suNday, MARCH 7, 2010 FALGUN 23, 1416, RABIUL AWAL 20, 1431 Hijri

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Leading News

Historic 7th March today
BSS/UNB, Dhaka

The nation will observe the historic March 7 today (Sunday) in a befitting manner, commemorating the fiery and soulful address of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on this day in 1971 when he made a clarion call to the people to fight against the Pakistani occupation forces to achieve the long-cherished independence.
Before a mammoth rally at the then Race Course Maidan (now Suhrawardy Udyan) on March 7 in 1971, Bangabandhu in a virtual announcement of independence declared, "--- ebarer sangram amader muktir sangram, ebarer sangram swadhinatar sangram (our struggle this time is the struggle for independence, our struggle this time is the struggle for liberation)".
In his speech, compared with US President Abraham Lincoln's historic Gettysburg speech, Sheikh Mujib said, "Since we have learnt to give blood, we'll give more blood. Inshallah, the people of this country must be liberated...Turn every house into a fort. Face (the enemy) with whatever you have."
His speech worked like a magic spell inspiring the entire Bengali nation to join the struggle for independence from the autocratic and repressive rule of the then Pakistani military junta.
Bangabandhu's historic address on March 7 in fact mobilized the whole nation to wage an allout non-cooperation movement in the then East Pakistan, preparing for a bloody war against the Pakistani Army to achieve the independence.
The whole nation, except a few pro-Pakistani elements, fought the Pakistani army for long nine months from March 25 in 1971 till achieving the ultimate victory on December 16 the same year.
He formally declared the independence of Bangladesh at 00-30 hours on March 26 (the night following March 25) in 1971 at his historic 32, Dhanmondi residence here. He was immediately arrested by the Pakistani authorities after declaration of the independence. Later, he was flown to the then West Pakistan where he had to spend the whole nine months in a dark death cell of a Pakistani jail.
President M Zillur Rahman and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in their separate messages on the occasion stressed the need for upholding the true spirit of the country's hard-earned independence and sovereignty being imbued with the spirit of the Father of the Nation's historic March 7 address.
Bangladesh Awami League has drawn up elaborate programmes to observe the day in a befitting manner.
The day's progarmmes will begin with hoisting of national and party flags at Bangabandhu Bhaban and central office of the party at 6.30 am. It will be followed by placing wreaths at the portrait of the Father of the Nation in front of Bangabandhu Bhaban at 7.30 am.
Prime Minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina will address as the chief guest a discussion organized by her party at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre at 3 pm. Different associate organizations of the party including Mohila Awami League, Awami Jubo League, Jubo Mohila League, Krishak League, Chhatra League, Sharmik League, Sechchhasebak League and Bangabandhu Sangskritik Jote and different socio- cultural organizations have also chalked out elaborate programmes on the occasion.

 No strategic plan yet to utilize new Bibiyana gas
UNB, Dhaka

Although the country is going to have an additional supply of about 600 million cubic feet of gas per day (MMCFD ) in next 2-3 years, which is badly needed for an energy-starved nation, there is no specific or strategic plan in sight yet for utilizing this new find.
Sources said the additional gas supply is set to come from the country's second- largest gas field, Bibiyana, in the wake of a desperate search for the fossil fuel as many cookers go dry, wheels of many industries often come to a halt.
After a survey into the Bibiyana gas field, its operator US-based international oil company Chevron recently determined a greater reserve in the field and placed a plan for doubling its production from the present level of around 600 MMCFD gas.
The survey report on the gas field indicated a larger reserve structure of 7.43 trillion cubic feet (TCF), which includes proven plus probable. The recoverable reserve is estimated to be 5.76 TCF, also more than double the previous estimate.
Officials at the state-owned Petrobangla believe that if the Chevron moves immediately, it should not take more than 2-3 years time to enhance the production from the hydrocarbon field.
The country produces about 1,900 MMCFD gas against an officially admitted demand for 2,200 MMCFD. However, many believe that the demand is much higher, but it's always kept scaled-down.
For gas shortages, country's power, fertilizer and industries are on the verse of collapse. The power department alone has to reduce power generation by 770 MW while a number of fertilizer factories remained closed for gas crisis-though both the items are essential for people' s survival and economic growth.
Many industries either have to scale down production or completely shout down operations. Household consumers' sufferings beggar description as they find no way but to stop cooking when gas is not available in the supply line. In such a situation, Bibiyana's new reserve came out to be very good news for consumers as they started sensing a relief from the crisis. But, so far, no plans are visible from the government side as to how it would utilize the new gas.
Only the Power and Energy Ministry is contemplating installing two large power plants, each having 450-MW capacity, at the Bibiyana gas-field site and building a pipeline from Bakhrabad to Siddhirganj. These two plants will consume a total of about 140 MMCFD gas while 460 MMCFD gas will remain unutilized. The crisis-ridden other sectors could be fed with the remaining gas.

 No room for corrupt, terrors on Bangladesh soil: PM
UNB, Kurigram

Sending a strong note of caution for troublemakers standing in the way of realizing Bangabandhu's dreamland Sonar Bangla, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Saturday said none would be allowed to play ducks and drakes with people's fate.
"Terrorists and the corrupt will not get shelter on the soil of Bangla. None will be given the chance to play ducks and drakes with people's fate. Bangladesh will be a developed, prosperous and poverty-free Sonar Bangla as dreamt by Bangabandhu," she told a huge public rally.
The rally was held at the ground of Kurigram Government Degree College on the occasion of her visit to the northern district to inaugurate the newly conceived National Service Programme for giving works to the jobless in the lean period under a social-safety-net recipe.
From the rally the Prime Minister handed over nominations to four people as beneficiaries of the National Service Programme. The fortunate four are M Sanaur Hasan, Jotsna Rani, Shah Alam and Ratna Biswas.
State Minister for Youth and Sports Ahad Ali Sarker presided over the rally, also addressed by Water Resources Minister Ramesh Chandra Sen, lawmakers Advocate Fazle Rabbi and Jafar Ali and Awami League organizing secretaries Abu Sayeed Al Mahmud Swapan and Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, joint secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif and Youth and Sports Secretary Mahbub Ahmed.
The Prime Minister announced that her government would start new programmes for the eradication of poverty. "We will work for you, we will establish Bangladesh as an independent and sovereign state that was the dream of father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman," she told the northerners.
She said that her government would make the country hunger- and poverty-free. "We have taken steps to make the country Digital Bangladesh where there will be no poverty and hunger."
The Prime Minister also assured that her government is working hard to make this long-neglected area free from monga (famine-like situation). "Let me confirm you, we will root out monga from your region," she told the gathering.
Hasina said that she has directed the officials concerned to make a cold storage for preserving seeds. Also, the government has taken steps for dredging Dharola, Teesta and Dudh Kumar rivers for the welfare of the people of Kurigram and adjacent backwater areas.
She said that Awami League always fulfills its election pledges and this time around also there will be no exception. "We are here to do that."

   BNP to create public opinion against govt ‘misdeeds’
Grand rally in Dhaka in April likely

UNB, Dhaka

Top leaders of opposition BNP are on countrywide organizational tours to prepare the 'field of movement' through strengthening party's grassroots units and creating public opinion against what they say government's 'misdeeds and failure to check price hike and deterioration of law and order.
The campaign is also designed to mobilize people against the government decision dropping the name of late President Ziaur Rahman from Zia International Airport and the Awami League government's 'repression on the opposition'.
On February 25 last, BNP national standing committee, the highest policymaking body of the party, at a meeting decided to form 19 teams headed by the party's senior leaders to visit all the districts team-wise to hold workers' meetings and public rallies. The standing-committee meeting also set April 7 as the deadline to accomplish the cross-country organizational tours.
BNP chairperson and ex-PM Khaleda Zia will visit all the divisional headquarters and address public meetings during this period. When contacted over phone, BNP standing committee member Nazrul Islam Khan told UNB Saturday that organizational tours by the senior leaders have already started to do the spadework for their planned anti-government movement. Replying to a question he said most of the standing committee members and some vice-chairmen have been assigned to the 19 teams for the organizational tours. He will take up his assigned responsibility to visit Bogra and Joypurhat on March 9.
Barrister Moudud Ahmed, another standing committee member, told UNB that he has been assigned to cover Dhaka, Narayanganj, Narsingdi and Munshiganj districts. To begin with, he will go to Narayanganj on March 12 and address a public meeting there.
Another standing committee member, Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman, said he will start his tour of Dinajpur, Panchagarh and Thakurgaon districts by the third week of this month.
BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia will go on her visit to divisional headquarters and address public meetings after the 19 teams finish the groundwork for setting the stage, said one member of the standing committee.
He said, "Possibly the BNP chairperson will embark on her organizational tour after April 10, and after completing the visit to five divisional cities, she will address a grand public meeting in Dhaka city."

   JS team visits CHT
Discussion in Dhaka on March 9

BSS, Khagrachhari

The parliamentary standing committee on Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) will sit for a meeting on March 9 in Dhaka to discuss in detail the recent clashes in the district and adjoining Rangamati last month.
"Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has sent us to see for ourselves at the field and stand beside the victims of the clashes that took place last month between Pahari and Bangalee communities," chairman of the committee Advocate Shah Alam told crowds while visiting Gangarammukh and Baghaihat of Rangamati district and Sat Bhai Para and Mahajon Para in Khagrachhari town on Saturday.
Committee members ABM Fazle Karim Chowdhury, Giasuddin Ahmed, Ethin Rakhain and Jyotindra Lal Tripura were also present on the occasions.
Shah Alam said a vested group with an ulterior motive has instigated the violence on February 19 and 20 in Baghaichhari and subsequently in Khagrachhari district town on February 23. The government has been able to identify some of the culprits but their names would not be disclosed now for the sake of further investigation, he said without elaboration.
He, however, assured the people of both communities that the perpetrators would be identified and brought to book to deter recurrence of such incidence in CHT, a place where nearly 20,000 people were killed due to decades-long insurgency before a peace agreement was signed in 1997.
"There is no room for violence between tribal and Banglaee community," Shah Alam said, urging all communities to remain alert against the conspiracies to foil the peace agreement that ended bloodshed in the area 12 years ago. He said the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was committed to implementing the accord and maintaining a peaceful situation in CHT for both tribesmen and Bangalees, many of whom got settled in CHT in last century through natural process of migration from plain land, but a big portion was settled in 1979 through a planned manner.
Both the communities blamed each other for the violence to the five-member parliamentary delegation and demanded exemplary punishment to the perpetrators, who burnt houses of rival groups and killed at least one person.

  Dhaka to protest BSF border shoot out at Delhi talks
BSS, Dhaka

Bangladesh is to "strongly protest" the frontier shootouts as directors general of paramilitary BDR and India's BSF are set to start a six-day conference in New Delhi from today (Sunday).
"The shootout by BSF men at frontlines is to dominate our agenda in the talks as the earlier India assurance to stop it during our talks (in Dhaka in July 2009) was not reflected in their actions in the past months," BDR chief Major General Mainul Islam told BSS ahead of his departure for the Indian capital today (Sunday).
He said a number of Bangladeshis lost their lives in the past months as it appeared that the "spirit of (Bangladesh and Indian) prime ministers summit (in January this year) could not be understood at the ground level".
The BDR chief's comments came as he leads a 19-member delegation to the director general level conference, the third after the February 25-26, 2009 carnage at BDR headquarters exposing the Bangladeshi border guards to a major debacle. Islam said cross-border trafficking of illegal weapons and drugs appeared as another major frontier problem for Bangladesh while the third major issue to be discussed in the talks was the "trend of occupying 'land of adverse possession' by Indian border guards particularly in (northeastern) Sylhet region".
BDR officials said they expected the Indian side to raise the issues like trespass of Bangladeshi "terrorists" and involvement in cross-border crime, formulation of joint border management planning, trafficking of child and women and construction of illegal establishments within the 150 yards of the zero line in the conference.They said the BDR would also raise the issues joint patrolling in the border, formulation of joint and coordinated border management, illegal entrance and firing towards Bangladeshi villages by BSF and Indian terrorists, push-in and construction of establishment, road, drain or barbed wire fence within 150 yards from the zero line in the conference.
The cross-border killings of particularly the Bangladeshis in BSF shootouts largely dominated the director general level border talks earlier this year in Dhaka between the BSF and their Bangladesh Rifles counterparts.

  ‘MRP on schedule’
BSS, Dhaka

Home Minister Advocate Sahara Khatun on Saturday said the formalities for introduction of Machine Readable Passport (MRP) and Machine Readable Visa (MRV) will begin in the scheduled time.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to inaugurate the MRP project through a colourful ceremony here on March 31, she added. Meanwhile, the Home Ministry on Saturday decided to distribute application forms for MRP from 10 regional passport offices of the country. The decision was taken at a meeting held at the Home Ministry with its Secretary Abdus Sobhan Sikder in the Chair. The meeting was attended, among others, by Director General of Passport and Immigration Directorate M A Mabud, Director Administration of the directorate Dr Parveen Bhanu and Project Director (PD) of the MRP Brigadier General Md Refayet Ullah and concerned officials.

Back Page

Daylight saving time to start from March 31
BSS, Dhaka

Country would observe DST (daylight saving time) again from midnight 31 as per the decision of the cabinet by moving the clocks one hour forward.
"The clock will again be put forward by one hour from March 31, and it will remain so until October 31, 2010. The decision was made in light of factors such as the growing demand for electricity," M Abul Kalam Azad, Secretary of the power division told BSS on Saturday.
Aimed at saving around 200 MW of electricity in pick hours and to ensure electricity into the irrigation pumps smoothly, government introduced DST from June last.
"The amount of electricity saving is not the main issue, this system helps us a lot to face peak hours demand in city areas," Ataul Masud, Managing Director, Dhaka Power Development Company (DPDC) said.
According to the power division the country would face severe load shedding in this summer as the demand of electricity for irrigation has increased by 1500-1600 MW than the previous year as the government targeted more production of Boro.
"Power Development Board (PDB) could produce 4100-4200 MW on an average against the estimated demand of 6000 MW in this summer," a top official of the power division said.
According to the power ministry the government has taken various measures to address the power crisis which needs two to three years to implement.
"We are working on war footing, we are just addressing the issue on adhoc basis as we don't have adequate quantity of fuel and efficient power plants, in this situation we all have to stop misuse of power and use efficient appliance to save energy," the power secretary said.
The country faces an acute energy shortage during March to September, electricity demand increases with average load shedding. However, load shedding will continue to occur until new power plants come into operation, which is expected to happen in 2011.

   Railway moves to develop level crossings
BSS, Dhaka

Bangladesh Railway (BR) has taken initiatives to develop 440 level crossings and approve 384 illegal ones across the country.
A project proposal involving Taka 184.95 crore has been sent to the Planning Commission in the regard.
The project evaluation committee of the Planning Commission recently decided to undertake a pilot project for the purpose, railway sources said.
As per the project proposal of the railway, 315 level crossings would be developed and 89 legalised in the west zone spending Taka 77.77 crore.
In the eastern zone, 125 level crossings would be developed and 295 legalised spending Taka 107.18 crore.
According to the railway sources, there are 35 level crossings between Kamalapur and Tongi. Of those, 14 are legal and the rest 11 have no approval. Nine accidents took place in eight months at these level crossings.
The unapproved level crossings do not have overpasses and underpasses and those are slowing down the speed of trains and increasing operation costs.
A committee was formed to identify the level crossings in Dhaka having no overpasses. The committee recommended construction of flyovers at five level crossings. Those are E/22 Staff Road, E/23 Progati Smarani, E/16 Magbazar, E/16 DFC and E/13 Malibagh.
Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain had visited Dhaka- Narayanganj and Dhaka-Joydevpur routes on April 25 last year. Then a decision was taken to construct flyovers at seven important level crossings.
Bangladesh Railway has 413 approved and 1,028 unapproved level crossings across the country. Of the approved gates, 371 are manned and 1,042 unmanned.
The number of accidents is increasing because of the unapproved and unmanned level crossings, the railway sources said.
A senior official said recruitment of 1,500 gatemen has become essential for the railway. Currently, temporary gatemen are working there.

   Movement to be launched to ensure Tarique’s return: Mirza Fakhrul

TBT REPORT

BNP senior joint secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the leadership of party's senior vice-chairman Tarique Rahman is a must to face challenges of the 21th century and make the country free from poverty.
He was addressing a students rally held in front of party's Nayapaltan central office in the capital on Saturday. The programme was organised to mark Tarique Rahman's 3rd imprisonment day by Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal.
Alamgir said party's newly appointed senior vice-chairman Tarique Rahman had started poverty eradication activities visiting door to door at grassroots levels and handed over different types of helping materials to poor people. When he started to implement his father's dream through helping poor people in the country, then, a group of conspirators launched attack on him. Now the leadership of Tarique Rahman is needed to make the country free from poverty.
He said the nationalist forces will have to take oath to expedite Tarique Rahman's return into the country. If necessary, movement will have to be initiated for ensuring his return.
Criticising Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's remark over proclamation of the country's independence and proclaimer of the independence, he said "it has to have limitation of treacherous behaviour. Our Prime Minister is still engaged in making false blame against Shaheed president Ziaur Rahman intentionally."
Chhatra Dal president Sultan Salahuddin Tuku presided over the programme while BNP's joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed, Aman Ullah Aman, MP, Sohiduddin Chowdhury Anee spoke among others.

   Kamrul for computerized land registration system
BSS, Dhaka

State Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Advocate Kamrul Islam on Saturday stressed the need for introducing computerized land registration system for easing public sufferings.
People are being suffered in various ways due to traditional land registration method, he told the freshers' reception of newly elected committee of Bangladesh Registration Service Association in the auditorium of Department of Public Works in the city, an official release said on Saturday.
Secretary-in-Charge of Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Ministry of Law Md Shahidul Haque, Secretary of Law and Judiciary Department Md Anwarul Haque and Secretary General of the Association Abdus Samad Mia, among others, addressed the function with Inspector General of Registration Department and president of the association Munshi Nazrul Islam in the chair.
Kamrul said the present government under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is pledge-bound to build a digital Bangladesh.
He said, "We want to introduce a digitalized land registration method to implement the pledge of building digital Bangladesh."
The present government wants to move forward in line with global advancement, Kamrul said, adding the department of land registration has to work with the latest development of land registration.

    Attaining Digital Bangladesh not too far: Muhith
BSS, Dhaka

Finance Minister Abul Mal Abdul Muhith on Saturday said attainment digital Bangladesh are not too far as all the ministries as well as many private organizations are being adopted various digital innovations.
"The progress in last one year in digitizing the country makes me believe that we aren't too far from attaining the goal of Digital Bangladesh," he said while speaking as the chief guest at the closing and award giving ceremony of the first ever three- day Digital Innovative Fair-2010 at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Novo Theater here.
Advisor to the Prime Minister Dr Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, State Minister for Science and ICT Arch Yeafesh Osman, UNDP Country Director, Bangladesh Stefan Priesner and Cabinet Secretary M Abdul Aziz spoke as the special guests.
Principal Secretary to Prime Minister's office and convener of Fair Organizing Committee Md Abdul Karim presided over the function while National Project Director, Access to Information Program and Member-Secretary of Fair Organizing Committee Md Nazrul Islam Khan gave vote of thanks.
Eminent scientists and leading writer Prof Zafar Iqbal and joint editor of Daily Prothom Alo Abdul Qaium also spoke on the occasion.
The Finance Minister said the government is becoming closer to the mass people with its various services with low cost as well as in more efficient way through various mood of digital devices.

    Give up yellow journalism : Azad
BSS, Rajbari

Information and Cultural Affairs Minister Abul Kalam Azad on Saturday urged all concerned to give up yellow journalism as it casts an adverse impact on the society and its people.
He said the present government would always welcome constructive criticism of media in the interest of the nation.
The minister was speaking as the chief guest at the foundation-laying ceremony of Rajbari Press Club complex.
Azad said the government has enacted 'the right to information act 2008' to ensure transparency and accountability in governance.
With ATM Rafique Uddin, President of Rajbari Press Club, in the chair, the function was addressed, among others, by Tarana Halim, MP, Mhafuza Mondal, MP, Kazi Keramot ALi and Zillul Hakim, MP.
Earlier, the minister visited the Rajbari Fine and Performing Arts Center.
He also joined the discussion and cultural function, organised on the occasion of one year completion of present government.

    Trading thru' Benapole port resumes
UNB, Benapole

Export-import activities through Benapole Land Port resumed Saturday after two days of suspension.
The trading through the land port remained suspended on Thursday due to annual conference of Indian CPM-backed workers' organization. On the other hand, the port activities remain halted due to weekly holiday on Friday in Bangladesh.
Benapole Customs Cargo officer Debashis Chandra said the trading through the land port resumed in the morning.
A total of 120 trucks loaded with Indian goods entered the country while 130 trucks crossed the border till 1pm, he said.
Several hundred goods-laden trucks got stranded on both sides of the port following suspension of the export-import activities and highly perishable commodities like fruits, onions and fish started rotting.

Editorial

Historic 7th March

Today ( Sunday) is historic 7th March - a red-letter day in our national history. This day in 1971 Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had delivered a historic speech at the Ramna Race Course (now Suhrawardy Udyan) urging the people to prepare for armed struggle for the liberation of the country. Well ahead of the declaration of independence of Bangladesh in the early hours of March 26, echoing the feelings of the Bangalee nation Bangabandhu on March 7 declared: 'The struggle this time is for emancipation, the struggle this time is for independence'.
This assertion, in fact, was the first and formal message to the people from their elected leader to build up 'fort at every house' and to 'combat the enemies with whatever you have near your hands'. Bangabandhu also directed the people to continue the struggle for independence 'even if I am unable to issue orders and even if my colleagues also are not available'. The message carried the first ever clear instruction from Bangabandhu to the people to get prepared for taking up arms to free the motherland.
Bangabandhu's speech of 7th March came in the wake of abrupt postponement by President Yahya Khan on March 1 of the inaugural session of the Jatiya Sangsad (Parliament) scheduled for March 3 in Dhaka and the launching of the non-cooperation movement by him (Bangabandhu) in protest. This address was the culmination of the Banglaees' struggle for self-determination into the struggle for independence. The 7th March speech of Bangabandhu, comparable only to the Gettysburg address of Abraham Lincoln, inspired the Bangalee nation to intensify the freedom movement and to prepare for the War of Liberation that began on March 26 and resulted in the emergence of Independent Bangladesh on 16 December 1971.
It may be pointed out that in his historic address of 7th March Bangbandhu had set two goals for the nation-- independence and emancipation. This he did as a statesman with farsightedness, because mere independence without economic emancipation is largely meaningless. In other words, economic emancipation of the people makes independence complete and meaningful. In our case, the fact remains that we have achieved independence through the War of Liberation in 1971, but our economic emancipation is yet to be achieved. The prime task lying before the nation, therefore, is achieving economic emancipation. So, the pledge of the people on the historic 7th March should be to consolidate political independence by giving democracy an institutional shape and attain economic emancipation to make independence really meaningful in people's lives.

  Law and order situation

A boy named Mukhtar Hossain was stabbed to death by miscreants at Kakrail on Friday night. On Thursday night BNP leader Anwarul Islam was killed in Jessore. A security guard was shot at by miscreants for toll at Tejkunipara in the city on Friday. Prem Krishna Roy, a businessman of old Dhaka was killed by criminals on Thursday for his refusal to pay Taka 10 lakh as toll. Besides, muggers shot and injured three people and looted Taka 69 lakh in Narsingdi on Thursday.
Such incidents of serious crimes are happening regularly at different parts of the country including the capital Dhaka. But strangely the home minister is continuously demanding that the law and order situation in the country has improved. She is also on record as saying that the law and order situation is now better than that prevailed in the country anytime before. But the real situation does not substantiate this claim.
In fact, there has been a spate of incidents of crime and violence across the country in recent days much to the disappointment of the public who had expected that law and order situation would improve considerably under the new regime which is committed to ending terrorism and ensuring security of life and properties of the citizens. Unfortunately, the law and order situation continued to deteriorate over the recent days and reached an alarming stage. The deterioration in the law and order situation is being caused in more than one way- by violence on the campuses in the name of student politics and by criminal activities of the hardened criminals. In most of the incidents of crimes, however, illegal fire arms are being used. And in the words of DMP Commissioner, a good number of illegal small firearms have made their way into the country from across the border and those are being used in criminal acts.
According to media reports, influx of illegal firearms into the country from across the borders has been posing a serious threat to the country's law and order situation since long. Although the law enforcers are continuing their drives and recovering illegal arms on a regular basis, the situation is not improving as huge illegal arms, specially small firearms are entering the country everyday. The continued inflow of smuggled firearms has been frustrating the efforts to reduce the number of illegal arms in the hands of criminals through recovery.
Against this backdrop, the government should make all out efforts to stop inflow of smuggled firearms from across the border and step up drives in the country to nab the criminals and recover illegal arms. Besides, steps should also be taken to take into task a section of police officials and political godfathers who allegedly patronize and protect the criminals.

Analysis

Flags flying over Bajaur

The armed forces correctly, if somewhat belatedly, perceived their patriotic duty and have responded to the deadly threat...admirably and, by the Grace of God, with outstanding success.

Salman Tarik Kureshi

Major General Tariq Khan, inspired by the sight of the Pakistan flag being raised over Damadola (Bajaur), claimed that this was probably the first time since Pakistan's independence in August 1947 that the national flag had flown here. That is right. That is what he said! Okay, so we understood that the murderous traitors of the TTP were not enamoured of our green ensign and chose to fly some other pennant altogether. But not since independence? Was there a slip of the tongue here?
Probably not. The fact of the matter is that, in these regions, the writ of the sovereign state of Pakistan never ran effectively anyhow. And that was before anyone had ever heard of any kind of Taliban.
FATA - Bajaur Agency; Orakzai Agency; Mohmand Agency; Khyber Agency; Kurram Agency; North Waziristan Agency; South Waziristan Agency; Tribal Areas adjoining Peshawar District; Tribal Areas adjoining Kohat District; Tribal Areas adjoining Bannu District; and Tribal Areas adjoining Dera Ismail Khan District - adjoins the province presently governed by Amir Haider Hoti. But they do not form a part of it. All this terrain, and the souls living thereon, are said to be under the direct charge of the president of the Islamic Republic.
But, let it be quite clear, the laws of the state of Pakistan do not prevail here. This is both a legal position and a reality on the ground.
Now, it may have suited a foreign imperial power to maintain two buffer zones between itself and the then Russian Empire, viz Afghanistan and the tribal areas on this side of the Durand Line. Since independence, however, Britain's successor state Pakistan has done nothing to integrate these regions with the rest of the country and extend the benefits (or otherwise) of Pakistani administration, legislation or sovereignty over them. Worse, where the administrators of the British Raj, through a combination of guile and clever management, had generally succeeded in exercising a substantial degree of actual control over these areas, even this disappeared over the last 60 years.
Our official bureaucracies, both civilian and military, permitted - indeed, even contrived at encouraging - a flourishing trade in smuggled goods to grow in the FATA belt. Perhaps they believed that this would generate a degree of wealth in these areas without the need for investing in infrastructure. Or perhaps they enjoyed permitting the duty free purchase of consumer durables by our urban elite.
The older among us will remember trips to Landi Kotal Bazaar and Bara Market to buy smuggled cloth, air conditioners and other such goodies. Easily bypassed customs checkposts were established well inside the borders of Pakistan in a hypocritical attempt at preventing these goods from entering our cities. But that was perhaps a time of relative innocence, of victimless crime. Inevitably, more sinister trades were to evolve. The author recalls a shop in the Bara market with counters on two opposite sides.
One counter retailed weaponry (including automatic weapons), ammunition and hand-grenades. The other side was where those so inclined could buy resinous lumps of marijuana or opium and deadly polythene packets of heroin powder.
"He profits from selling two kinds of death," I recall thinking, as the bearded shopkeeper left his establishment at the afternoon call to prayer, "How dare he face his Maker?"
Motor vehicles stolen in Karachi, Lahore and other cities were spirited away into the Tribal areas, there to be repainted and sold back into those very cities. Kidnap victims are lodged in these 'regions-beyond-the-law' while ransoms are negotiated. Thanks to the gross negligence of practically every Pakistani government over the decades, these regions became a thieves' paradise - an extended band of lawlessness along our northwest that sheltered and offered a staging ground for every kind of crime and violent criminal organisation. These latter would include the leaders of al Qaeda and the Taliban.
For a time, the FATA regions were used principally as staging grounds for incursions into Afghanistan. Since it may have been felt that what happened in that country was not our concern, our authorities were not too pushed about these "safe havens". In fact, the regime of Pervez Musharraf went out of its way to strike 'deals' with the Taliban, under which these savages were effectively granted judicial, governmental and tax collection privileges in much of FATA. After 2003, the emerging militancy of Takfiri ideas, which consider most Pakistanis to be infidels, began to cause serious concern.
The venom spewed by Sheikh Essa, a firebrand cleric from Egypt, and others galvanised extremist forces, who
now sought to militarily carve out 'Islamic Emirates' from the regions of Pakistan's northwest and Afghanistan's southeast.
In the process, whatever vestigial writ the threatened state of Pakistan may have possessed, was eliminated. Violent primitives erupted outward, even into the 'settled' districts of Pishin, Quetta, Bannu, Kohat, Malakand, Swat, Swabi and Hazara. Beyond the ethnic Pashtun belt, they carried their war against the state of Pakistan into our major cities, from Peshawar to Karachi. Their terror bombings have caused the mass murder of citizens everywhere and they are clearly implicated in the assassination of Pakistan's best known political personality.
The armed forces correctly, if somewhat belatedly, perceived their patriotic duty and have responded to the deadly threat...admirably and, by the Grace of God, with outstanding success. That is why General Tariq Khan and we can today triumphantly salute our national flag, flying again over Damadola.
The point is that this 'Band of Anarchy' in the tribal areas will continue to fling out destructive tendrils in every direction, both into Afghanistan and Pakistan, until such time as FATA ceases to exist as a separate political and administrative entity. General Kayani is spot-on correct when he refers to the need for a three-pronged approach: clear, hold and develop. It is this last approach that needs to be emphasised. Development does not merely mean building roads and canals, although that is part of it. More importantly, it includes the tricky job of developing sustainable political structures and institutions.
A holistic process, comprising a mix of political, administrative, juridical and ideological initiatives, needs to be envisaged and implemented. And this is the job of our political authorities, not of the armed forces.

The writer is a marketing consultant based in Karachi. He is also a poet

  A transformed Kabul?

To all my questions, the president offered only one answer: Kabul was ready to go to any extent in fostering dependable good-neighbourly relations with the people and government of Pakistan.

Saleem Safi

Being a Pakistani of Afghan origin, I have never missed an opportunity to visit Kabul because of my love for the city and its people. However, every time I visited there, I felt a change in the city's political ambience. This time around the change was both novel and pleasant.
My latest visit to Kabul was aimed at recording Afghan leaders' interviews for a special edition of Geo's current affairs programme "Jirga" and interactive sessions with the vice chancellor of Kabul University, teachers and civil society leaders under the auspices of the German foundation Konrad Adenauer Stiftung.
In the month of February last year, the chilling cold spell due to heavy snowfall had made life difficult in the city. However, now the light snowfall had given way to pleasant weather in
Kabul. For the three days over there, clear blue skies and pleasant
weather could hardly be resisted for enjoyment.
The really heartening change was the positive attitude towards Pakistan. From Hamid Karzai to his national security advisor, Rangeen Dadfar Spanta, to education minister Farooq Wardag to members of parliament from the North, everyone avoided talking about Pakistan in a negative tone. Unlike in the past, this time my requests for an interview for Geo News elicited positive responses from all the Afghan leaders from the North, including Doctor Ramzan Bashar Dost, a presidential candidate in the previous election. The latter not only happily appeared on "JIrga" on short notice, but also avoided voicing his traditional hard stance on Pakistan.
Unlike in the past when Afghan friends would avoid a visit to the Pakistani embassy in Kabul despite repeated requests, most Afghan leaders and journalists not only met the Pakistani ambassador in crowded meetings but also tried to establish a good relationship with him.
On the day we arrived in Kabul, Ambassador Muhammad Sadiq had just returned from a visit to northern Afghanistan. He told me that he had visited all northern provinces where the unbelievably warm receptions in his honour impressed him.
President Karzai afforded me an opportunity of a detailed meeting on short notice. During the meeting, I insisted on a formal interview. However, the president preferred an informal discussion lest an inadvertent reference to "any issue, God forbid, harm the improving relations between the two countries."
However, in the final moments of our meeting, I took him to a formal interview. To all my questions, the president offered only one answer: Kabul was ready to go to any extent in fostering dependable good-neighbourly relations with the people and government of Pakistan. On the issue of Mullah Beradar, he said he hoped that Pakistan will send him to Afghanistan, without demanding that Islamabad extradite him. He was non-committal on the issue of Mullah Berdar's trial in Kabul or his possible use in the planned reconciliation process with the Taliban.
The residents of Kabul have always hated the US presence in Afghanistan. This attitude, which translates into awareness that rapprochement with Pakistan is require, has infected the leadership in Kabul as well. Some government leaders are using the same language against the US as Gulbadin Hikmatyar and Mulla Muhammad Umar.
In the discussion with Hamid Karzai, Rangeen Dadfar Spanta and some presidential staff were also in attendance. My criticism of US policies towards the region did not evoke a single word of contradiction from President Karzai. Similarly, the president did not reject my assertion that the presence of the US in the region was the root cause of problems and the US and India had played a negative role in creating misunderstanding between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
I also reminded Karzai that he and Musharraf, instead of understanding the US mission of instigating a perpetual downslide in relations between our two countries, had introduced into the equation for achieving the opposite. But now Kabul and Islamabad must set together for a fruitful dialogue and shut their doors to third-party intervention. This suggestion was received well.
At the call to Maghreb prayer, Karzai took me to the mosque. After the prayers, Karzai was all praise for the architectural beauty and vastness of Faisal Mosque. Nostalgically, he remembered enjoying his prayers in this mosque during his stay in Islamabad.
I was thinking as to how long Karzai, a practicing Muslim, would remain in the good books of the US and its Western allies. Perhaps, the secular allies and friends failed the religious president's attempts at bringing peace and stability to the country through reconciliation with estranged Afghan groups with religious credentials and nomenclatures.
Perhaps, a transformed Karzai is now more willing for reconciliation with these groups. But the-million-dollar question is: will his friends and allies allow him to do this? And more importantly, are the religious forces, Taliban and Hizb-i-Islami, ready to respond to such overtures?
In response to Karzai's praise for Faisal Mosque, I told him that this symbol of heavenly love is open for a warm welcome to the president if the journey to Islamabad takes the shorter route via Torkham and not Washington. In a lighter mood, he retorted that one should also offer the same advice to Islamabad. Sarcastically, I told him that we used to call Karzai a mayor of Kabul, having no control on the rest of the country.
But now the facts seem in reverse gear; Kabul's writ is spreading out of the city's bound towards far-flung provinces, while our president wears the mantle of Islamabad's mayor. Factually, being imprisoned in a five-star hotel called the Presidency and accessible to few men, the latter cannot even claim to be a mayor of Islamabad.
However, on few and far between opportunities, I have unsparingly requested the occupants of the GHQ and presidential palace to kindly take the route to Kabul via Torkham and not Washington.


The writer works for Geo TV. Email: saleem .safi@geo.tv

Viewpoints

Public pressure can spur composite talks

India-Pakistan dialogue needs people-to-people consensus on like-minded ideas.

Kuldip Nayar

It is unfortunate that Indian Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor hijacked a successful trip by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Riyadh. Tharoor's remark that Saudi Arabia could be an interlocutor for talks between New Delhi and Islamabad from the soil of Saudi Arabia itself was indeed embarrassing.
I concede that Tharoor is indiscreet and does not yet know the ropes of diplomacy or politics. But I suspect that his observation was not off his own bat. Somewhere, somehow, he got the impression that the prime minister would go along with him. True, an interlocutor is not a mediator. But he participates in talks.
Tharoor's remark may well have been a trial balloon. Apparently, it did not work due to a strong reaction against it in the country. India's enunciated policy after the Shimla Conference in 1972 has been to talk to Pakistan, without involving a third party. Was there a rethink? Whatever the import of Tharoor's observation, it gives oxygen to the dead dialogue between the foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan.
Islamabad's reaction to Tharoor's remark was on the expected lines: it is ready for talks without conditions. This throws light on the talks held last week at Delhi. It means that Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir found himself constricted in talks. No doubt, Indian foreign secretary Nirupama Rao made it clear to Bashir that the talks would be confined to terrorism. But Bashir touched all points, including Kashmir and water, although not at great length. Yet the whole dialogue was cursory as if the two sides had to go over an exercise.
The talks must have been a formality because a few hours later I found both foreign secretaries sitting separately, engaged in an animated discussion, at the Pakistan House in Delhi for dinner.
There was no recrimination, no rhetoric, no raising of voices. They talked about confidence-building measures and conciliation. Both foreign secretaries were a picture of understanding.
This is how the two sides behave when they are relaxed and normal and when they have no agenda to sell, no government message to convey, no gaze of publicity, no anxiety to say what will go down well back home. In fact, the Indians and the Pakistanis are the best of friends when they are not talking at each other.
True, India refused to have the "composite talks" which were broken in the wake of the terrorist attack in Mumbai. But was the use of that particular phrase necessary? It only underscores the point that they cannot get out of the corner in which they have painted themselves.
Positive view
However, both looked like having an understanding that they would conclude the meeting at the stage of talks, without in any way breaking or suspending them. The two foreign secretaries did not know what their political masters contemplated for the future. Still, had the foreign secretaries fixed the date for the next meeting in Islamabad, the people on both sides would have taken a positive view of the talks.
How far Bashir could go was known to him because before arriving in Delhi, he had met President Asif Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and the army high-ups. Bashir was surprised by India's allegation of involvement by two Pakistan serving majors in the 26/11 carnage as was Rao by the charge that New Delhi was involved in Balochistan.
The arrest of Hafez Saeed, the Laskhar-e-Toiba chief, is New Delhi's criterion to judge Pakistan's 'sincerity' in fighting against militants who are reportedly operating in India. His latest ultimatum of war to India irritates New Delhi.
What may have made Bashir, otherwise suave and soft-spoken, lose his cool at the press conference was the strong message that National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon gave him. Menon reportedly minced no worlds in accusing Pakistan of sending terrorists to India as part of state policy.
Since the meeting with Menon was before the press conference, Bashir did not maintain the equanimity which he showed during the talks with Rao.
Since the Manmohan Singh government is increasingly on the defensive because of abnormal price rises and inflation, I do not think that it is in a position to take any bold initiative on Pakistan. The opposition, led by the BJP, has created an atmosphere where it is difficult for New Delhi to break the status quo, either on Pakistan or Kashmir.
This should not surprise either Islamabad which is prepared for a long haul or Washington which is more focused on Kabul and Islamabad than New Delhi.
The silver lining is Singh's reiteration that there was no option to talks and that the two countries must come to an agreement to live like good neighbours.
Perhaps the civil society on both sides can help. Some persons who have been working on the improvement of relations between India and Pakistan for years can meet to pick each other's brain to see if they have some new ideas on which they agree. The proposals made by them may change the situation.
The governments on both sides would find it difficult to reject the suggestions if they have unanimous backing. If these persons fail to arrive at a consensus they would put a question mark against their like-mindedness.
They would probably prove to both New Delhi and Islamabad that there was no go from the wider people-to-people contact to remove the mistrust which has got ingrained because of acts of omission and commission of the two governments.
Ultimately, the pressure of the public on both sides will make the governments relent.

Kuldip Nayar is a former Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and a former Rajya Sabha member.

  Side-effect

Undoubtedly, there can be no negotiation on civilian rule if the country has to survive, let alone prosper.

Harris Khalique  

We are told by historians, the likes of Dr Mubarak Ali apart, that there were many benevolent, generous and sagacious kings who ruled different parts of the world. Under their rule, the subjects lived in complete peace, harmony and some of them in abundance. We are told that they invested in the welfare of their people. Marcus Aurelius of Rome, Charlemagne of France, Nausherwan of Iran, Peter the Great of Russia, Haroon and Mamoon Rasheed of the Arab-Muslim Empire with its capital in Baghdad, and Ashok and Akbar of India are remembered for their decisions and deeds that strengthened their empires and brought prosperity to those they ruled. The clergy of any faith was at their service and nobles were loyal. The armies they raised were well-fed and properly equipped. They would award artists and reward artisans. The King is dead -- Long live the King.
Then why humanity at large became so averse to autocratic rule and chose democracy instead? Couldn't they look for good kings and queens? Why did people start thinking that long-lasting and powerful systems and institutions could only be built through democracy? While some of us may still look for a messiah to arrive from the heavens and rid us of all our predicaments, the knowledgeable and the wise across the world are convinced that leaders should come through a process of elected representation.
Pir Ali Mohammed Rashdi, noted scholar and Pakistan's ambassador to different countries, wrote two letters to the president of the republic, General Ayub Khan, and copied these to the foreign minister, Manzur Qadir, in 1960 and 1961 from Manila. In his first letter, he insisted that wings of politicians who ask for democracy should be clipped if Pakistan has to prosper. The second letter is more interesting where he prays to the president that Pakistan should be converted into a monarchy. There are two other letters, one addressed to the president again and one only to the foreign minister, where Rashdi has belaboured his point that constitutional monarchy with General Ayub Khan as the king would be the only solution to Pakistan's problems. This couldn't happen, however, and the people of Pakistan prevailed. We have a history of struggling against oppression, dictatorships and injustice. The citizens of this country struggled against Ayub, Yahya, Zia and Musharraf. They also protested whenever a civilian leader behaved like a dictator. We got democracy back due to the struggle of the people at various levels. Undoubtedly, there can be no negotiation on civilian rule if the country has to survive, let alone prosper.
But we have to go very far from where we are now. In the plutocracy of Pakistan, every ruler is a king whether he has been elected or has illegitimately taken power through gun. Pir Ali Mohammed Rashdi's recommendations never made it to our Constitution and law books. But the spirit of his letters sits in the hearts and minds of the rulers. Nawaz Sharif would visit rape victims, Shaukat Aziz would meet Mukhtaran Mai, superior courts would take suo moto notices and President Zardari would dole out money to the family of a child born in a rickshaw. No systems, no institutions, no justice, no education, no health for the teeming millions. I wish all children in Pakistan are born in rickshaws on blocked roads due to the moving cavalcade of the king or his nobles. Each child will then be guaranteed a decent living and a proper education from the royal treasury.

The writer is a poet and advises national and international institutions on governance and public policy issues. Email: harris@spopk.org

  Muslims in Europe

Anxieties about the growing visibility of Muslims in the public space continue to ripple across Europe, with some governments introducing legal changes to reflect these concerns.

Shada Islam 

Those seeking evidence of a clash of civilisations, with mainstream secular Europe permanently locked in battle against its Muslim minority, need look no further than the Netherlands.
The once-tolerant country and one-time flagship of multi-cultural harmony appears to be in the grips of virulent anti-Muslim fervour, with the far-right anti-immigrant party of Geert Wilders making big gains in local elections this week, held ahead of a nationwide poll in June.
Dutch voters are not alone in voicing anti-Islamic sentiments. Anxieties about the growing visibility of Muslims in the public space continue to ripple across Europe, with some governments introducing legal changes to reflect these concerns.
In November last year, Swiss citizens overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on building new minarets. In neighbouring France, headscarves are banned in state schools and other government institutions and parliament is considering legislation which would ban the burka. Some German states have banned teachers from wearing headscarves in public schools.
Municipal results in the Netherlands put Wilder's party in first place in Almere, a town near Amsterdam, and second in The Hague, one of the country's largest cities and the seat of the Dutch government.
If repeated in national elections on June 9, the Freedom Party could win 27 out of 150 seats - from its nine seats today - becoming one of three big parties, which under the Dutch coalition system, would be in line to join any future national government.
"We are going to conquer the entire country we are going to be the biggest party in the country," he said after the vote.Mr Wilders has called Islam a backward religion and wants a ban on headscarves in public life. Mr Wilders also harbours fierce sentiments against a 'leftist elite' which he claims still believes in "multiculturalism, coddling criminals, a European super state and high taxes".
Anti-Muslim European politicians, who, like Mr Wilders engage in colourful anti-Muslim rhetoric, have little serious or constructive contribution to make as regards the ongoing Europe-wide debate on immigration. However, they are the flavour of the season in many European countries.
In Britain, the anti-immigrant British National Party is growing in popularity while in France, the National Front remains high up in the popularity stakes.
Almost six out of 10 Britons think women should be banned from wearing the burka in public, saying they would support a prohibition similar to the one being contemplated in France, according to an opinion poll for the Financial Times.
Support for a ban in Britain is not as high as in France, where about 70 per cent of people say they would back prohibition. Hostility to the burka is also stronger in Spain and Italy than in the UK. Sixty-five per cent of Spaniards and 63 per cent of Italians said they would favour such a ban.
Such sentiments feed in to fears propagated by some US analysts and Europe's far right politicians that European Muslims are determined to transform a once-tolerant continent into a Eurabia, a land where the Sharia will reign supreme, adulterers will be stoned and thieves have their hands cut off. Europe, according to this vision, is morphing slowly but surely, into the ultimate battleground for a clash of civilisations.
The more serious problem, however, is that mainstream European political parties have yet to develop a counter-narrative which recognises Europe's need for migrant labour and the reality of its diverse, multi-religious societies.
While extremist politicians like Wilders hit the headlines, rational debate and a thoughtful analysis of Europe's current challenges of reconciling justifiable concerns about employment, building an inclusive society and accepting "new Europeans" as part of the EU landscape, are conveniently sidestepped.
Despite Mr Wilders and his fellow scaremongers, Europe is not as hostile as depicted to Islam and Muslims. Scores of men and women, protesting against Wilders's rhetoric, turned up to vote wearing headscarves, in protest against his demand for a tax on Muslim headgear and for the wearing of headscarves to be banned in all public buildings.
Significantly, Frans Timmermans, a member of the Labour party and minister for European affairs, has said that Labour would refuse to govern in coalition with Wilders's party, and he called on other parties to consider a similar approach.
"The Labour party stands for a completely different Holland than the party of Wilders, and for that reason we cannot be in a government with him," a spokeswoman for the Labour party said. Other major Dutch political parties, however, have not yet ruled out the possibility of governing with Wilders as a coalition partner.
The reality is more complex. While the radical actions of some Muslims make headlines and provide fodder for Europe's far right, European Muslims represent a mere three per cent of the population of the continent, hardly the numbers to ensure a Muslim take-over of Europe.
True, a minority of Muslims may live on the radical fringes of society but a large majority accepts European norms and lives successful and integrated lives, belying the stereotype of European Muslims as obsessed with their religion, socially and economically marginalised and unable and unwilling to integrate into mainstream society.
A study by Maastricht University in the Netherlands underlines that "new European" entrepreneurs (immigrants) are leading to the revitalisation of impoverished urban neighbourhoods, creating jobs and prompting innovation in products and services.
Immigrant entrepreneurs account for 10 per cent of overall self-employed businesses in Germany and 11 per cent in France. In Britain, the figure is an impressive 14 per cent of the total number of self-employed people.
Most European Muslims live comfortably and in peace with their non-Muslim neighbours. The Open Society Institute (OSI) and the British Council are working on projects which focus on living in a 'shared Europe' where conflict and confrontation between different religious communities is not inevitable, provided governments - at national, provincial and local levels - implement correct policies.
As the OSI points out, "the needs and experiences of Muslims and non-Muslims are largely the same ... daily concerns centre around the need for better quality of education, improved housing, cleaner streets and tackling anti-social behaviour and crime".

The writer is Dawn's correspondent in Brussels.

International

Resolving Kashmir, water issues with India imperative for regional peace: Bashir

ANI, Islamabad

Pakistan Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir has once again raked up the Kashmir issue, and said peace and stability in South Asia is not possible unless the long pending disputes between India and Pakistan are resolved.
During a meeting with foreign diplomats here, Bashir said India should also come forward to resolve water issues with Pakistan in accordance with the Indus Waters Treaty, and added that Islamabad is committed towards resuming a sustained and meaningful engagement with New Delhi, The Dawn reports.
The Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), inked between India and Pakistan in 1960, provides appointment of a neutral expert by the World Bank as a last option to resolve water related issues between both the countries.
Pakistan has been blaming India for an unsporting attitude during bilateral talks, which were initiated to resolve the impending water dispute.
Pakistan has been opposing the construction of the Kishanganga hydropower project on the Ganga River in Kashmir, which is called Neelum upon entering Pakistan. Pakistan has said that the diversion of the waters of the Neelum is not allowed under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, and it will face a 27 per cent water deficit, when the project gets completed.
Referring to the roadmap for the resumption of composite dialogue, which was tabled before India during the February 25 Foreign Secretary level talks, Bashir said Pakistan is hoping to get a positive response from India as there is no other option but "to talk to each other with clarity and sincerity of purpose."

  British PM makes surprise visit to Afghanistan  
AFP, Camp Bastion

Early wins in a major anti-Taliban push in southern Afghanistan offered a "beacon of hope," British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Saturday during a surprise visit to troops.
During a lightning eight-hour visit to Helmand province, Brown cautioned that it was vital to "win the peace as well as the war" and vowed that British troops would stay in Afghanistan until their job was done.
"That's why it's so crucial that in just 20 days since the start of the operation, the combined international and Afghan forces, military and civilian, have begun turning a stronghold of brutal Taliban insurgency into a beacon of hope for local people," he told reporters.
Before Brown left Camp Bastion, one of the biggest military bases in Afghanistan, Britain's Ministry of Defence reported the death of a British soldier in an explosion in Helmand on Friday.
The death in the Sangin district, which the ministry said was not connected to the ongoing assault that Brown referred to, brings to 269 the number of British troops killed since operations in Afghanistan began in October 2001. This is likely to be Brown's last Afghanistan trip before a general election expected on May 6.
The premier met British troops at Camp Bastion and two frontline posts in Nad Ali, including one taken from the Taliban during Operation Mushtarak, currently under way in Helmand.
Mushtarak, in which US Marines have led 15,000 troops against Taliban insurgents in two poppy growing districts, Marjah and Nad Ali, is the first test of a counter-insurgency strategy for speeding an end to the war.
Brown said foreign forces were now "making the progress that's necessary".
The military assault, which was launched on February 13, is the first stage in re-establishing Afghan sovereignty over the area.

  Leading Pakistani Taliban deputy believed killed
AP, Islamabad

A top Pakistani Taliban commander close to al-Qaida is believed to have been killed in an army airstrike, officials said Saturday, in the latest apparent blow to insurgents who have attacked Pakistan and threatened U.S. forces in neighboring Afghanistan.
Maulvi Faqir Mohammed was believed to be among some two dozen insurgents killed Friday at a sprawling compound in the northwest Mohmand tribal region, two intelligence officials said. Interior Minister Rehman Malik said authorities had not identified the bodies of Mohammed or his fellow commander Qari Ziaur Rehman, but all the militants hiding at the site were killed after the helicopter gunships were dispatched on "real-time" intelligence.
"If Faqir Mohammed and Qari Ziaur Rehman are alive, then I will be surprised," he told Pakistan's Express news channel after receiving a briefing from the paramilitary Frontier Corps in the northwestern city of Peshawar.
The intelligence officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media on the record. They said they were confident of their information, but warned that the remote, dangerous nature of the region made it nearly impossible to offer a definitive confirmation at this stage. Pakistani Taliban spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mohammed was a deputy commander in the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan - Pakistan's Taliban Movement - leading the network's operations in the Bajur and Mohmand tribal regions.

  Dialogue needed to avoid miscalculations: Singh
Dawn Online, New Delhi

Citing the example of nuclear-armed Soviet Union and the United States who remained in touch with each other at the height of the Cold War, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told parliament on Friday that talking with Pakistan was similarly necessary to avoid potential miscalculations.
Defending his government's policy to engage Islamabad in talks despite protests by rightwing opposition, Dr Singh said India's foreign policy under his stewardship had gained the world's respect as a force of moderation, reason and stability.
"The situation in our neighbourhood is a matter of high priority for us. We have had very intense and substantive interactions with our neighbours in the last nine months," Dr Singh said.
Opposition's deputies had voiced concern over the situation in Pakistan and the terrorism that they said was emanating from there against India. "The government fully shares these concerns. We are taking all necessary steps to strengthen our internal security and defence capabilities," the prime minister said in reply to the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address to Parliament. "Our policy towards Pakistan is consistent, cautious and realistic."
Explaining what this meant, Dr Singh said he had never believed that the channels of communication with Pakistan should break down.
"Even at the height of the Cold War, the Americans and the Soviets used to speak to each other. The chances of miscalculation can only increase in an environment of no contact. I therefore personally conveyed our concerns to President Asif Ali Zardari when I met him in Russia and later to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani at the NAM Summit last year."
Analysts said Dr Singh's stress on India's policy of apparent moderation with Pakistan, both seen by the international community as potentially vulnerable to nuclear miscalculations, could help pre-empt criticism at a nuclear summit hosted by the US president that both countries are to attend shortly.

  Global warming making Tibet's environment much more fragile than before

ANI, New Delhi

Reports indicate that the impact of global warming is affecting the ecological environment of Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region, accelerating glacial shrinkage, reducing snow and increasing land desertification.
"Global climate change has made Tibet's environment much more fragile than before," said Hao Peng, vice-chairman of the Tibet autonomous regional government. "Economic and social development is out of the question for Tibet if we do not have a pleasant ecological environment," he added.
"The autonomous region, located on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, with an average altitude above 4,000 meters, is more sensitive to temperature changes than other places, as greenhouse gas tends to affect higher altitudes," he said. The average temperature in Tibet has risen by 0.32 degrees centigrade every decade since 1961, quicker than the national and global warming rates, according to the China Meteorological Administration.
"Given its underdeveloped industry, Tibet's own carbon emissions are very low and the deteriorating environment is mainly due to global climate change," Hao said.
The central and local governments have been more focused on environmental protection and sustainable development in Tibet in recent years. The local government has limited the development of steel, paper, chemical and other heavy polluting industries in Tibet.
Since 2001, it has shut down nine cement plants, seven steel mills and four paper mills, according to Zhang Yongze, director of the autonomous regional environment protection bureau.

  Maoists aim to topple India by 2050: minister
AFP, New Delhi

India's Maoist rebels aim to overthrow the Indian state by 2050, a top government official was quoted Saturday as saying, warning security forces faced a "long, bloody war" to defeat the rebels.
The Maoists are taking a gradual approach to building their forces for a "final and lethal assault, aiming to overthrow the government by 2050 or 2060," said India's home secretary G.K. Pillai, citing documents seized in raids. "We have a long, bloody war ahead," Pillai told a seminar on left-wing extremism Friday, according to television and newspaper reports.
His statements came as police in the eastern state of West Bengal sought the release of a teacher, abducted Friday, whom the Maoists have threatened to kill if authorities do not free six prisoners.
India's government, which sees the rebels as its biggest internal security threat, has launched offensives against Maoists in several areas but has failed to curb their operations significantly. "It's quite likely violence will go up in 2010 or 2011," Pillai said.
"We don't have the forces to move into areas where they (Maoists) are positioned," said Pillai, adding at least 908 people died in Maoist attacks in 2009, the highest since 1971.

  Thaksin urges supporters to join anti-govt rally
AFP, Bangkok

Thailand's fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra on Saturday used his Twitter page to call on his supporters to join a mass anti-government rally, after a court seized most of his fortune. Thaksin's loyal "Red Shirts", so-called for the clothes they wear, will gather in Bangkok on March 14 to demand the return of the populist leader, who was ousted in a military coup in 2006, and that the government quit.
"I would like to urge those who love democracy, justice, equality, and those who think that I have been bullied without mercy and humanity, to join the rally," wrote Thaksin on Saturday.
Thailand's Supreme Court last month ordered the state seizure of most of Thaksin's 2.3-billion-dollar shares wealth that it ruled he accumulated illegally by abusing his power to benefit his telecoms firm.
He is currently living in Dubai to escape a two-year jail term from another corruption case. Several other graft charges are outstanding against him. The Red Shirts say they expect up to 600,000 people to attend this month's rallies, with people starting to gather from around the country on March 12 before the main demonstration two days later.
Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva has said his trip to Australia would go ahead as planned on March 13-17 despite the rallies, but a slew of extra security measures are in place and he has said tougher laws may be invoked.

 New Iran rocket launch site shows N. Korea links: Jane’s
AFP, London

Iran is building a new rocket launch site a short distance from an existing complex and seems to be working with North Korea, information group IHS Jane's said Friday.
Construction visible from satellite imagery of the new site, near the city of Semnan east of Tehran, suggests that Iran has been collaborating with Pyongyang, said the London-based defence intelligence group.
Iran unveiled the Simorgh (Phoenix) space-launch vehicle (SLV) on February 3 but has not publicly revealed the location of the rocket's launch complex, it reported.
But Jane's said it had observed a new launch pad four kilometres (6.5 miles) northeast of the existing Semnan site on a satellite image dated February 6.
The site could ultimately launch Tehran's next-generation Simorgh rocket, it said.
Jane's said that using satellite photographs taken on February 11, as Iran celebrated the Islamic revolution's 31st birthday, it had identified the Simorgh and Safir-2 rockets displayed in Tehran's Azadi Square.
The site includes a gantry tower which is 13 metres (43 feet) wide, approximately 18-20 metres tall "and has a cliff-side flame bucket nearly as high as the tower itself."
"It appears midway towards completion," it said, adding that the launch pad could easily accommodate the 27-metre Simorgh if the gantry were to be extended by an additional 10 metres.
And it added: "The development of the Semnan facility and the Simorgh SLV both demonstrate the likelihood of collaboration with North Korea in Iran's missile programme.
"The platforms seen on the new gantry tower resemble those seen on the gantry tower at North Korea's new launch pad at Tongchang. A drainage pit 170 metres directly in front of the pad also mirrors one at Pyongyang's new west-coast launch site.
"Similarly, the first stage of the Simorgh strongly resembles the North Korean Unha-2, with four clustered engines and nearly the same dimensions."
The respected information group concluded that Iran appears to be forging ahead with developing its missile and rocket capabilities despite US-led diplomatic pressure, including threats of new United Nations sanctions.
"Given these investments in its missile infrastructure, and despite the United States attempting to garner support for further sanctions against Iran for its nuclear programme, Tehran appears determined to continue developing its missile and rocket capabilities in the foreseeable future," it said.

  Israeli action at Al-Aqsa sacrilege: Islamic conference
AFP, Jeddah

The Organisation of the Islamic Conference Saturday accused Israeli police of sacrilege by occupying Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque and called for international intervention to "end Israeli aggression."
Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary-general of the Jeddah-based pan-Islamic body, said in a statement that Friday's fighting between Muslims and Israeli police, which injured dozens, was "a sacrilegious act of profanation of the holy Islamic site."
The police action was "a violation of international law and a flagrant attack on the freedom of religion of the nature that could take the region into a war between religions," he said in the statement.
Ihsanoglu called on the international community and the Quartet on Middle East peace-the European Union, the United States, Russia and the United Nations-to "pay heed to the gravity of the Israeli violations and the threat they pose to the region now and in the future."
He called for "an international intervention effective at every level to end Israeli aggressions and make Israel respect international law."

  Bomb kills 4 near Shi’ite shrine before Iraq poll
Reuters, Najaf

A car bomb killed four Iranian pilgrims near Iraq's holiest Shi'ite shrine on Saturday, a day before a parliamentary election that Sunni Islamist insurgents have vowed to wreck. The blast gutted two tour buses parked near the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, which draws millions of pilgrims from Iraq and Iran each year. Salim Nema, a Najaf health official, said the attack wounded 54 people, including 17 Iraqis and 37 Iranians.
At least 49 people have been killed in the last few days of campaigning, some of them soldiers and police voting early.
Sunday's election is a test for Iraq's young democracy, and will help decide whether the country can avoid relapsing into violence as U.S. forces prepare to withdraw by the end of 2011. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's bid to win a second term on a platform of providing services and security is under challenge from former Shi'ite partners and from a cross-sectarian, secularist group headed by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi.
Insurgents have warned Iraqis, especially minority Sunni Arabs dominant under Saddam Hussein, to stay at home on Sunday. Sunni militants say the vote will solidify power for Shi'ite factions they see as hostile, heretical and unfit to rule.

  Obama turns up the heat for health care overhaul
AP, Washington

Facing a tough political environment, President Barack Obama on Saturday turned up the heat for the health care overhaul that has been his top priority for a year yet has not been passed by Congress.
The president used his weekly radio and Internet address to attempt to sway a public that has soured on the topic - and especially Democratic lawmakers who are wavering.
Republicans, recognizing the public's mood, are repeating their call to start from scratch on a proposal that would potentially reshape how all Americans receive health care.
"Now, despite all the progress and improvements we've made, Republicans in Congress insist that the only acceptable course on health care is to start over. But you know what? The insurance companies aren't starting over," Obama said in prepared remarks.
"I just met with some of them on Thursday, and they couldn't give me a straight answer as to why they keep arbitrarily and massively raising premiums - by as much as 60 percent in states like Illinois. If we do not act, they will continue to do this." Republicans were not swayed.
"It's not too late: we can, and we must, stop this government takeover of health care," said Rep. Parker Griffith, a first-term congressman from Alabama who switched parties in December and delivered Saturday's Republican message. The retired physician continued: "Make your voice heard now.
America deserves better." The competing radio addresses underscored the urgency behind Obama's last-ditch push for immediate health care reform.
Without a victory - and quickly - Democrats move into a fast-approaching election season without a major, tangible accomplishment that affects voters' pocketbooks.
And with a chasm remaining between the two parties, Democrats considered passing the overhaul with votes just from their party.
That process would let the 59 Senate Democrats declare victory with 51 votes instead of a 60-vote supermajority. More importantly, it would allow Obama's team to get back to talking about the economy, which has shed more than a million jobs since the recession began.

  Colombia candidate gets shoe-tossing treatment
Reuters, Bogota

An aspiring Colombian presidential candidate had a sandal tossed at him on Friday in an incident reminiscent of a protest against former U.S. President George W. Bush in Iraq.
Would-be Conservative Party candidate Andres Felipe Arias was greeted with jeers and shouts of "Get out of here" and "You're corrupt" when he started speaking at an event in Barranquilla city on Colombia's Caribbean coast.
One woman tossed her shoe at him from the front row, local television reported. She missed and Arias stepped off stage with a smile to hand it back to her before blowing a kiss.
"I'd do it again under the circumstances," said Leyda Delgado. "This is the only way for the poor to get noticed because they have the all the media supporting them."
Arias is one of an array of candidates vying to succeed President Alvaro Uribe after the Constitutional Court ruled he cannot run for re-election in the May presidential race.
"It didn't have force," Arias said of the thrown shoe on local radio. "We have the force of ideas and democracy."
Uribe steps down in August after two terms highlighted by his U.S.-backed campaign to crackdown on leftist guerrillas and cocaine traffickers. He remains popular among most Colombians and any candidate will likely follow his security policies.
Arias, an Uribe ally and former agriculture minister, has been dubbed "Little Uribe" by the media for adopting a style similar to the hard-line president. But he has been dogged by an investigation into accusations of corruption.

  Turkish PM says U.S. vote to ‘greatly harm’ ties
Reuters, Istanbul

A U.S. resolution that branded as genocide the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War One will seriously damage U.S.-Turkish relations, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.
NATO member Turkey, an ally crucial to U.S. interests in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and the Middle East, has expressed its outrage at Thursday's non-binding vote in the Foreign Affairs committee of the U.S. House of Representatives and recalled its envoy to the United States for consultations.
"The decision of the Foreign Affairs Committee will not hurt Turkey, but it will greatly harm bilateral relations, interests and vision. Turkey will not be the one who loses," said Erdogan, speaking at a summit of Turkish businessmen.
The Obama administration made a last-minute appeal against the resolution and has vowed to stop the vote, which was broadcast live on Turkish television, from going further in Congress.
Turkey has said the resolution could jeopardise a fragile drive by Turkey and Armenia to end a century of hostilities and lead to further instability in the south Caucasus, a region crisscrossed by oil and gas pipelines to Europe.
Turkey's ambassador to the United States told journalists upon his return on Saturday it was unclear when he would head back to Washington following his talks with the president, prime minister and foreign minister.
"I will return when the time is right ... We will have to wait and see," Namik Tan said. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was quoted in a media report as saying that the consultations could last "a long time."

  Some Chile quake surivors wait for aid a week on
Reuters, Concepcion, Chile

Some survivors were still waiting for government aid on Saturday in south-central Chile, a week after one of the strongest earthquakes on record killed hundreds and repeated aftershocks rattled nerves.
Homeless and desperate, they voiced anger and frustration at outgoing President Michelle Bachelet's handling of the disaster, saying her administration was too slow to mobilize after the 8.8-magnitude quake struck early on Feb. 27.
"There has been an earthquake of disorganization on the part of the national and local governments," said Fernando Valenzuela, 44, who is living with his wife in a tent city of 42 in the small town of Dichato, near the quake epicenter.
"This is a case of bad governmental management and organization ... 99 percent of the help we have got has been from the Chilean people, and only 1 percent from the government," he added as others cooked meals over open fires.
The area around Dichato was devastated by tsunamis triggered by the quake, which washed large ships as far as 1.2 miles (2 km) inland. Cargo planes have landed around 19 miles (30 km) away with water, food and bedding, but aid had yet to reach some tent cities.
Many outraged survivors say they were not warned of the tsunamis, which followed hours after the quake, and the Navy acknowledged its alert system broke down and fired the head of its catastrophe warning unit.
It was one of a series of blunders. The government is revising the death toll after authorities mistakenly tallied scores of missing people who later turned up alive.

Business/Economy

Corporate bodies should contribute to CSR only after performing responsibilities: Mashiur

UNB, Dhaka

Prime Minister's Adviser on Economic Affairs Dr. Mashiur Rahman on Saturday said the corporate bodies should contribute to corporate social responsibility (CSR) only after performing their primary responsibilities.
The corporate bodies in performing their primary responsibilities must ensure that their activities do not harm the society and environment, he said.
Dr. Mashiur Rahman was addressing a roundtable on 'Policy support to CSR in the Context of Bangladesh Business and Economy' at Hotel Sheraton in the city. Eminent economist Dr. Wahiduddin Mahmud was the key speaker at the roundtable, organized by Management and Resources Development Initiatives (MRDI) in partnership with Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF), Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and Bangladesh Federation of Women Entreprenuers (BFWE).
Former adviser to the caretaker government Rasheda K. Chowdhury, FBCCI president Annisul Huq, Executive Director of Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Mustafizur Rahman, MJF Executive Director Shahin Anam and Chairman of ACI Group of Companies Anis Ud Dowla and NBR official Syed Aminul Karim, among others, took part in the discussion.
Dr. Wahiduddin Mahmud, also a former adviser to the caretaker government, said the government should provide policy support to CSR so that the corporate bodies can come forward in carrying out social welfare activities.
Tax exemption, according recognition and other promotional policies are needed to encourage the private companies to contribute to social welfare, he added.
He noted that the corporate bodies are willing to perform various philanthropist activities, but they often feel discouraged due to various bureaucratic complications and limitation of policy support to CSR.
Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud suggested the government to form an education foundation like the Zakat Foundation so that the corporate organizations can donate to the education foundation from their CSR fund with a view to helping the country's education sector.
He also urged the government to ensure standard of products by all companies saying that otherwise, the honest companies would be deprived and the consumers cheated as sub-standard products would flood the market.
NBR official Syed Aminul Karim said the government had already fixed 15 areas where the private companies can carry out philanthrophic activities and enjoy tax exemption of 10 percent for maximum Tk 10 lakh donation subject to fulfilling certain conditions.
"If we offer blanket exemption of tax on CSR donation, the facility has the possibility of being misused and the private companies may use the CSR as a technique of tax evasion."
CPD executive director Dr Mustafizur Rahman said the government should introduce a monitoring system to stop misuse of fund and corruption in CSR activities. The government can also introduce a system of reward so that the private companies feel encouraged in CSR activities.

 Global rice stocks on rise
BSS, Dhaka

Despite crop loss in major rice producing countries, including India and the Philippines, the global stocks of the staple grain showed comfortable increase in the recent time.
Rice Today, a quarterly report of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), in its January-March 2010 issue reported 22 percent rise in the stock over the two years to the end of 2009.
"Rice stocks have increased by more than 16 million tons, from 75 million tons in 2006 to 91.5 million tons in 2009, with China, India, Indonesia and Thailand accounting for most of the increase," the report said.
But, the report was skeptical about immediate positive impact on the rising prices as it observed that the additional stocks, with the exception of Thailand, would not be available to the market to cease price increase.
It, however, observed that the increasing stock would stabilize the market and prevent the price from surging up to $ 1,000 per tons that the global market saw during November 2007 to May 2008.
The report forecast $600 per ton for the near future and could not see any chance of going back to $300 as it was few years back.
It suggested rice importing countries to refrain from making single large purchase in the greater interest of global food securities.
Global rice prices started moving upward in November 2009 after months of steadily declining since reaching their all-time high in May 2008.
Supply problems in some major rice- producing countries, namely, India and the Philippines, have been the primary reason for this reversal of price trend, the report said. The IRR report finally expects that India's reversal of rice import would comfort the global market with ensuring further stability in the prices.

  ‘Greece does not need financial help at present’
AFP, Berlin

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that Greece does not need financial aid at present and that the stability of the eurozone was "assured," after talks with Prime Minister George Papandreou.
"Greece has not asked for financial assistance. The stability of the eurozone is assured today. As a result, the question (of aid to Greece) is not being asked ... I am even optimistic that it will not be asked," Merkel said.
The Greek parliament on Friday approved a third round of austerity measures aimed at reining in the country's gaping budget deficit and restoring trust on financial markets in its solvency.
The 4.8-billion-euro (6.5-billion-dollar) package was enough for Athens to be able to raise an urgently needed five billion euros through a bond issue on Thursday, albeit at a painful six-percent-plus rate of interest.

  RB Group to produce AC, LCD, LED television
TBT Economy Desk

RB Group of Companies Ltd, the country's leading electrical, electronics and automobile manufacturing and marketing company, is going to manufacture air-conditioners (AC), LCD and LED television, and computer monitor in its Hi-tech Industries in Gazipur, according to the company. In a bid to manufacture these products the construction work of Walton Hi-tech Industries Ltd and Walton Micro-Tech Corporation are going on in full swing at on 20 acres of land at Chandra in Gazipur, outskirts of the capital Dhaka, said Emdadul Haque Sarker, director of the company at a press conference held its head office in the city on Thursday.
"These factories are first of its kind in Bangladesh, would be the South Asia's largest electronics industry," clamed Sarker. He hopes the company hopes that new factory will go to production by June this year.
Earlier, the company has also started manufacturing of Walton brands refrigerators and motorcycle from its industrial park.
He said the country needs five lakh refrigerators annually. Once, all of the products were imported to meet domestic demand, but now the company is able to supply all the local requirements.
"As RB group is getting huge response from the market in refrigerator and motorcycle business so that they have taken the initiative to set up such factory," he added.
The state-of-art-technology of the factory has world standard facility to manufacture quality refrigerators and motorcycles and electronics goods.
The hi-tech factory has now about 2,000 workers and capacity to produce about 8 lakh refrigerators of 17 models. Officials claim that production can be enhanced if there is a market demand.
"After getting good response from local market Walton now eyes ASEAN countries," said the high official of the company. The company has recently signed an agreement with a famous Malaysian company- Aget Group- under which on the primary stage every year the Malaysian company will import 1,00000 refrigerators and 50,000 motorcycles. Through its marketing channels, Aget Group will sell the imported Walton brand refrigerators and motorcycles to near countries-Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Myanmar and other countries.

  US deficit, debt to exceed Obama forecasts
AFP, Washington

The United States will chalk up a wider budget deficit and higher national debt than projected by US President Barack Obama over the next decade, new estimates by Congress showed Friday.
Obama has underestimated the government budget deficit for the 2011-2020 period by 1.2 trillions dollars and the public debt by 1.8 trillion dollars, the Congressional Budget Office said.
Under Obama's latest budget projections, the cumulative deficit over the decade would be 8.532 trillion dollars, or 4.5 percent of gross domestic product, the nation's economic output. But the CBO estimated Friday the deficit would snowball to 9.761 trillion dollars or 5.2 percent of GDP.
The CBO also forecast that the deficit for the next fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2011, would be 75 billion dollars higher than projected by the White House. The White House had projected that deficit falling to 1.267 trillion dollars in 2011 from a record 1.556 trillion dollars in the current 2010 fiscal year.
The CBO, an independent non-partisan agency that provides economic data to lawmakers, also said that Obama's debt projections were optimistic. By 2020, the national debt would balloon to 20.3 trillion dollars, or 90 percent of GDP, CBO director Douglas Elmendorf said in a report Friday.
The Obama administration projects the debt at 18.5 trillion dollars or 77 percent of GDP in 10 years.
"The outlook for our debt is even worse," said Republican Senator Judd Gregg, charging that Obama's spending plans "will bankrupt the country."
A financial crisis that plunged the nation into recession required the government to launch multi-billion-dollar rescue packages to prevent the collapse of the financial industry and stimulate economic growth.
In the president's 2011 budget unveiled last month, billions of dollars are to be poured into nurturing the economic rebound and battling near double-digit unemployment.
But the government moved to cut programs, such as the US bid to return to the moon, and freeze non-security discretionary outlays.
Obama, who inherited a flood of red ink from his predecessor George W. Bush, established a bipartisan commission last month charged with finding ways to reduce the gaping US budget deficit.
Deficit problems in the United States "won't be solved overnight," he said, adding that the commission and other steps he was pursuing would be "finally putting America on the path towards fiscal reform and fiscal responsibility."
The president has promised to halve by 2013 the 1.3-trillion-dollar deficit he took on.
The president's budget predicts the deficit will tumble to 727 billion dollars, or four percent of GDP, by the end of his term in 2013.
Obama is also pursuing health care reforms under a 950-billion-dollar plan aimed at covering 31 million uninsured Americans, cutting abuses by the vast insurance industry and lowering premiums.
He pushed Congress this week to pass the historic health care overhaul by a party-line vote if needed, calling for action in the coming weeks after a bitter year-long debate.

  China says exports to fully recover in 2-3 years
AFP, Beijing

China said Saturday it could take up to three years for its exports to return to pre-financial crisis levels, as the Asian powerhouse shifted its focus to domestic demand.
"Our exports have just started growing again," commerce minister Chen Deming told reporters on the second day of the National People's Congress, the annual parliamentary session.
"We will need two to three years (for exports) to get back to 2008 levels."
China's exports were hit hard by the international financial crisis from the autumn of 2008, when worldwide demand dropped off. Chen warned the world economy was not yet on a secure footing and it was "too early to say" demand for Chinese exports would grow this year.
"There has been some recovery in China's foreign trade value but there are still uncertainties," Chen said.
"China's recovery is fragile... and it is still possible for a double dip," he said, referring to the notion of a second recession beginning before an economy has fully recovered from the first.
Beijing announced a massive four-trillion-yuan (586-billion-dollar) stimulus package at the end of 2008, with much of the money targeted at large infrastructure and other projects aimed at boosting domestic demand.

  World banks’ leaders pledge better banking industry
BSS, Dhaka

Leaders of the world's leading banks here today pledged to build a positive financial future for the banking industry.
Financial experts of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values (GABV), an independent network of 13 banks, said the world is now fighting with the continuing pain of the financial crisis and expressed their belief that a brave new future for the banking industry is possible. Speaking at the launching of a second meeting of the GABV at BRAC centre, co-founder of the GABV and founder Chairperson of BRAC Fazle Hasan Abed said banking industry is uniquely placed, particularly in the developing world, where fighting poverty would remain the first priority in the foreseeable future.
Climate change has become the another growing global threat where the banking industry has to commit itself to and therefore banks must take the lead and for the developing world there is need to recognize the fact that this is a 'core' sustainability issue. "The GABV aims to raise $250 million in new capital by pooling the expertise and resources of its members. Raising this money will result in $2 billion in new lending, at a time when credit continues to be scarce," said Peter Blom, chair of the GABV and chief executive officer of Triodos Bank in the Netherlands.
He said, "We need to raise more money and invest in the sustainable bankers of the future so we can use it to its full potential. And we want to promote sustainable banking models that can deal with long-term social and environmental crises."
According to Katrin Kaeufer, research fellow at MIT, they share a number of characteristics that could be adopted more widely to build a sustainable world economy.
The bankers would spend three days near Dhaka, working together to build a specific capital raising programme, exploring an education programme to develop a new breed of sustainable bankers to handle the money they raise, and identifying the issues that they are best placed to campaign on.
The Global Alliance for Banking on Values is a group of banks using finance to build a more sustainable future for the environment and underserved people and sectors. It was launched in March 2009.
The GABV, which uses finance to deliver sustainable development for unserved people, communities and the environment, represents seven million customers in 20 countries, with a combined balance sheet of over $14 billion. The banks operate in countries as diverse as Germany, Mongolia, Peru, and the US, and have weathered the financial storm with considerable success.
It has announced an ambitious commitment to support the expansion of $2 billion in lending to unserved communities and green projects around the world, the release said.

National

Free healthcare
PM for private initiatives to supplement govt efforts

BSS, Dhaka

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday called for taking private initiatives for supplementing the government efforts to reach healthcare services to the doorsteps of people.
"We are making allout efforts to reach healthcare services to the doorsteps of people. But it's not possible for the government alone to achieve the goal. There should be private initiatives side by side with the government efforts," she said while talking to patients, doctors and a cross section of people of Sirajganj from her Gano Bhaban residence through a video conference.
The Prime Minister heard the people and replied to their questions.
The Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust organized the function on the premises of Sirajganj University College as part of its countrywide healthcare programmes for free.
Health Minister A. F. M. Ruhal Haque, Adviser to the Prime Minister Dr Syed Modasser Ali, State Minister for Fisheries and Livestock Abdul Latif Biswas, members of parliament Zinatunnessa Talukder, Wares Hossain Belal and Tanvir Shakil Joy, Coordinator of Bangabandhu Memorial Trust Dr Habib Millat and President of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Dr Mahmud Hasan were, among others, present at the function on the premises of Sirajganj University College, while Prime Minister's Adviser H T Imam, State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Capt (retd) Mujibur Rahman were present at the function of the video conference at Gano Bhaban in Dhaka.
The free of cost healthcare programmes were launched on January 10 this year, coinciding with Bangabandhu's Homecoming Day.
After the video conference, Deputy Press Secretary Mahbubul Huq Shakil briefed journalists.
The Prime Minister said the Bangabandhu Memorial Trust is providing free healthcare services in remote areas of the country and the programmes are going on successfully with the cooperation of doctors. The programmes will continue till March 17, the birthday of Bangabandhu, she said.
Sheikh Hasina said a total of 6.82 lakh patients of 400 upazilas were given free healthcare services under the programmes. In all, 1,000 patients underwent cataract operation, she added.
Giving thanks to the doctors for their support and cooperation and those who provide medicines for carrying out the healthcare programmes, the Prime Minister said the programmes will cover every upazila very soon.
Describing the activities of the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum, Sheikh Hasina said, "We have donated 32 No. Dhanmondi residence to the trust although we (two sisters) get nothing after the brutal killing of the Father of the Nation on August 15 1975."
"Nearly 1,200 poor students were given scholarship for education from this trust and there is a plan to increase the number of poor student scholarship from the trust," she added.

  IGP asks new police sub-inspectors to work for security of people

BSS, Rajshahi

Inspector General of Bangladesh Police Nur Muhammad on Saturday called upon the newly recruited Sub- inspector of Police to devote themselves to eliminating crimes, ensuring peace and security of the people.
The newly recruited police members have to come forward with all their efforts to restore law and order in the country even at the cost of supreme sacrifice, he further said. He was addressing the passing-out ceremony of 31st outside cadet sub- inspectors of police (batch 2009) as chief guest at the Bangladesh Police Academy, Sarda.
Terming the cadets as the main driving force of Bangladesh Police IGP Nur Muhammad asked them to bring back people's confidence towards the police stations through hard-working, characteristics boldness and honesty and application of intelligence.
He said the success of a government largely depends on the law and order situation of the country and called upon the cadets to start their profession with positive role against anti-social activities.
He mentioned that the activity of Bangladesh Police has been acclaimed in the global arena as the police forces have been working in the war-ravaged nations as UN peace-keepers. He also inspected a smartly parade by eight contingents of 132 cadets and received their salute.
Principal of the academy Abdus Salam, PPM, and Parade Commander Shihab Kaiser Khan accompanied the IGP during the parade inspection.
The IGP awarded medal of all-rounder to Abu Raihan and Firoj Uddin on academic, Sujan Kanti Barua on horse-riding and Saidul Islam on musketry.
Police and civil high officials and others concerned attended the well- decorated and colourful ceremony.

 No acid violence after 2015 targeted
Male gathering against violence on Mar 8

BSS, Dhaka

A male gathering to raise awareness against the acid violence will be held on March 8 at Dhanmondi's Rabindra Sarobar in the capital. Elaborate programmes have been taken to hold the gathering to express solidarity by the gathering of people with candlelight.
Acid Survivors Foundation (ASF), an organization to fight acid violation and a Bangla newspaper Daily Prothom Alo are jointly organizing the rally.
Disclosing this at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club here, ASF executive director Monira Rahman said rallies would also be held at 18 districts of the country.
Chairman of ASF Parveen Mahmud, joint editor of Prothom Alo Abdul Quiyum, Fazilatunnesa of ASF and singer Rashed Uddin Tapu were present. Monira Rahman said committed male people, who always raise their voices against any kind of children and women repression, are needed to build a balanced society by ensuring gender equality. "A conscious male can aware another one in the country," said Monira.
Occurrence of acid violence in the country has drastically been reducing at 13 percent rate since 2003 due to several steps taken by public and private sectors, she said adding if the trend continues at the present rate, there will be no acid incident after 2015.
A total of 145 people have become victim of acid violence last year, said the ASF ED.

 Beware of genetically modified foods: Environmentalists
UNB, Dhaka

Authorities should be careful about genetically modified foods, as such foods can cause wide variety of health problems, including accelerated aging, immune dysfunction, insulin disorders, organ damage and reproductive disruption, said environmentalists.
Fearing environmental disasters, they also said that the genetically modified foods and crops in the country would change the genetic characters of the indigenous species of crops and plants.
"We're very scared about the genetically modified foods and the main reason is uncertainty. As we don't know how much harm these foods can cause for us," Abu Naser Khan, chairman of Paribesh Bachao Andolon (save environment movement) told UNB on Saturday. He said the genetically modified foods could destroy not only the nature but also the humanity. Such foods are produced with the use of various harmful chemicals.
Khan also said that indigenous species of crops should be produced more to meet the increasing food demands. "We'll have to stress on producing selected high-yielding breeds of paddy to produce more crops."
Referring to the warning by American Academy of Environmental Medicine, Dr Mohammed Ataur Rahman, Director, Centre for Global Environmental Culture (CGEC) and Program on Education for Sustainability of IUBAT, said the public should avoid genetically modified foods, as there is more than a casual association between such foods and adverse health effects.
He mentioned that a large number of studies and incidents have implicated genetically modified foods in a wide variety of health problems, including accelerated aging, immune dysfunction, insulin disorders, organ damage and reproductive disruption.

Sports

Mohit Mayur clinches boys' singles title
TBT report

Mohit Mayur Jayaprakash became champion in the boys' singles competition in the 24th Bangladesh ITF Junior Tennis Championship, while Sabina Sharipova lifted the girls' singles title on Saturday.
Mohit Mayur Jayaprakash of India did not face much trouble to defeat Chinese contender Xin Gao in the boys' singles final. Mohit, who was in a coruscating form throughout the tournament, eased past Xin Gao 6-3, 6-2 to claim the title.
Uzbekistan girl Sabina Sharipova also had an easy sailing in the girls' singles final. She scored a comfortable 6-1, 6-2 win over Xuanshuo Ou of China in the final showdown to capture the crown.
Head of Products of GrameenPhone Limited Michael Malvebo awarded the prizes among the winners after the final as chief guest.
President of Bangladesh Tennis Federation M Shahriar Alam, MP, General Secretary Ishtiaq Ahmed and other officials were also present on the occasion.

  Aussies settle Olympic score with Spain
AFP, New Delhi

Favourites Australia defeated Beijing Olympic silver-medallist Spain 2-1 on Saturday to move closer to a semi-final berth in the men's field hockey World Cup.
The Kookaburras scored once in each half, with Luke Doerner converting a penalty corner in the 20th minute, before Glenn Turner increased the tally 10 minutes before the final whistle.
Doerner's sixth goal of the tournament helped him draw level with leading goalscorer Taeke Taekema of the Netherlands, while Turner scored his fifth.
Australia avenged the 3-2 defeat at Spain's hands in the Olympic semi-final at Beijing and took their points tally to nine from four matches in group B.
European champions England, who already have nine points from three games, will become the first team to qualify for the semi-finals if they avoid defeat against hosts India later on Saturday.
The Kookaburras will fancy their chances of taking the other semi-final spot from the group with a goal difference of plus-16 ahead of their last league match against Pakistan on Monday.
Spain are almost certainly out of the semi-final race with just six points from four matches.
Australian coach Ric Charlesworth said he was delighted at the win, but slammed the umpires for awarding seven penalty corners to Spain.
"I am very angry at the umpiring today (Saturday)," he said. "Giving them seven penalty corners put a lot of pressure on our players. Some of them were just not warranted.
"Umpiring has been a problem for some years, but one expects better at a World Cup."
Spanish coach Dani Martin conceded his team will now have to be content with playing classification matches.
"You don't deserve to be in the semi-final if you waste seven penalty corners," he said. "We will now try to finish among the top six.

  Feni Soccer blanks Chittagong Mohammedan 2-0
TBT report

Feni Soccer Club registered its third victory in the Bangladesh League football competition defeating Chittagong Mohammedan Sporting Club 2-0 at MA Aziz Stadium in Chittagong on Saturday.
Mintu Sheikh scored the first goal for Feni side on 58 minutes after the first half had failed to produce any goal. Yousuf consolidated the visitors' victory with his 75th-minute strike to ensure full points.
Feni Soccer earned 12 points from nine matches, while Chittagong Moha-mmedan secured six points after nine matches.

  Sylhet becomes U-14 national cricket champion
TBT report

Sylhet Division lifted the title of Young Tigers Under-14 National Cricket Competition after a comprehensive 119-run victory over Khulna Division in the final held at Mymensingh Circuit House Ground on Saturday.
Batting first, Sylhet scored 196 for eight in its stipulated 50 overs and then bundled out Khulna for a paltry 77 only in 34.4 overs.
Abdul Ahad of Sylhet won the Man of the Match's award taking three wickets for 24 runs.
Eight teams from six divisions participated in the competition. BCB Age Group Selectors monitored the tournament to identify players for the Under-15 National Pool.
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President AHM Mustafa Kamal, MP, was the chief guest at the final and distributed prizes.
Brief Scores
Sylhet: 196/8 in 50 overs (Zakir Hasan 44, Shahnur Rahman 37, Fahad Hasan 29, Sabibur Rahman 2/25, Mehedi Hasan 2/38).
Khulna: 77 all out in 34.4 overs (Kamruzzaman 12, Abdul Ahad 3/24, Asadul Hasan 3/12).

   BFF XI defeats EU XI 3-1
TBT report

Bangladesh Football Fede-ration (BFF) XI defeated European Union (EU) XI 3-1 in an exhibition football match at Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka on Saturday.
Sheikh Mohammad Aslam scored two goals, while Shafiqul Kader Munna added for BFF XI, consists of former Bangladesh national footballers.
Chris Roy scored the only goal for EU XI.

  Wenger impressed by Korean stars
AFP, London

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admits the success of South Korean players in the Premier League has made him reconsider the possibility of signing Asian stars.
Wenger knows the qualities of Asian players better than most in Europe after spending 18 months working in Japan as manager of Grampus Eight, but Japanese midfielder Junichi Inamoto has been his only signing from the region since taking over at Arsenal 14 years ago.
Inamoto's failure to make an impact in the Premier League convinced Wenger that Asians were a risky investment.
However, he has been forced to think again after seeing Korean stars Park Ji-Sung and Lee Chung-Yong in action at Manchester United and Bolton respectively. Wenger now acknowledges the Koreans have proved players from Asia have plenty to offer top English clubs and he wouldn't rule out looking at some of the continent's best at this year's World Cup, which features South Korea, North Korea and Japan.
"I know that the Korean players in England are doing very well and of course it excites a little bit your curiosity," Wenger said. "The Korean players have done one important thing. There are very few Asian players who have made it in Europe and especially the Premier League but the Korean players look to adapt very well."
Wenger has been a big fan of United winger Park's since first coming across him in action for Dutch club PSV Eindhoven against Arsenal in the Champions League.
Park has given Wenger some uncomfortable moments after scoring in two of his last three games against the Gunners, including a crucial strike in last season's Champions League semi-final second leg at the Emirates Stadium.
Wenger is especially impressed with the 29-year-old's ability to combine endless energy with a priceless knack of scoring important goals. "He made his name in Eindhoven first in the Champions League and when you play against him he is a very hard working player who sacrifices for the team but as well has some good skills.
Park isn't the only Korean to catch Wenger's eye. Lee has been a big hit for Bolton despite the club's struggles and new boss Owen Coyle has kept faith with clever midfielder since replacing Gary Megson earlier this year.
As a self-confessed football addict who spends much of his time at home watching matches from around the globe on television, the World Cup offers Wenger a golden opportunity to cast his eye over potential signings and he plans to travel to South Africa for the finals as a television analyst.

  Australia wins Davis Cup tie
AFP, Melbourne

Australia advanced to a play-off for a return to the World Group after completing a 3-0 victory over Taiwan in their Davis Cup Asia-Oceania zonal tie here on Saturday.
The combination of Carsten Ball and Paul Hanley clinched the best-of-five match tie at Melbourne Park with a straight sets win over Yang Tsung-hua and Yi Chu-huan in the doubles.
The Australian pair prevailed in two tiebreak sets before rounding out a 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/2), 6-2 victory.
Australia, 28-time winners of the Davis Cup, won both the opening day singles on Friday to take a commanding grip on the tie.
Bernard Tomic, at 17 Australia's youngest Davis Cup player in 77 years, crushed Yang, 6-2, 6-1, 6-1 and Peter Luczak downed Yi 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.
Australia will now face the winner of the tie between Japan and the Philippines in the second round from May 7-9 for a place in the elite 2011 World Group.
"I thought our guys improved as the doubles match went on and have the potential to be a really good team together," captain John Fitzgerald said.
Australia last won the Davis Cup in 2003 when they defeated Spain 3-1 in Melbourne. Both Australia and Taiwan are without their top-ranked players this weekend.
Two-time Grand Slam champion Lleyton Hewitt is sidelined after recent hip surgery, while Lu Yen-hsun decided to pass on the tournament. Fitzgerald said Hewitt could be back for the next round in May.
"I hope he's fit, he informs me he's probably ahead of schedule in terms of his recovery so let's hope his body feels good by then," Fitzgerald said.
"We win this and it gives him an opportunity to continue the competition later in the year-we want to get back in the World Group."

   Japan beats Philippines in Davis Cup
AFP, Osaka

Japan Saturday took an insurmountable, 3-0 lead over the Philippines to secure a place in the second round of the Davis Cup Asia-Oceania zone Group One.
After two singles wins Friday, Takao Suzuki teamed up with Toshihide Matsui to beat Treat Conrad Huey and Cecil Mamiit 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 in the doubles of the best-of-five contest.
On Friday, Tatsuma Ito needed three hours and 13 minutes to score a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win over 698th-ranked Huey in the opener.
Japan's number two Go Soeda followed him by storming back from behind to beat Cecil Mamitt 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 for a 2-0 lead. Ito is currently Japan's top-ranked player after Kei Nishikori dropped to 898th this week with an injury to his right elbow that has forced him out of action for almost a year.
Japan will play Australia in the second round from May 7-9, vying for a place in the play-off for the World Group. Australia also took a 3-0 lead over Taiwan to reach the second round.

   Paes and Bhupati keep India in race
AFP, Moscow

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupati kept India's hopes of advancing into the Davis Cup World Group second round alive on Saturday, beating Igor Kunitsyn and Teimuraz Gabashvili in straight sets.
The Indian doubles specialists, who won 14 Grand Slam titles during their career, outclassed the Russian duo 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in one hour 36 minutes to reduce their team's arrears before Sunday's rubbers with Russia leading 2-1.
"We play well together and we both enjoy playing doubles," Bhupathi said. "Today we played very well."
Paes said: "It wasn't tough to win as they are both singles specialists and their tactics are definitely not the best possible for the doubles match.
"They were spending too much time on the base line, while we played aggressive tennis and, I believe, won the match deservedly."
The visitors looked in command from the start breaking Kunitsyn's serve early for a comfortable 4-1 lead, which they confidently held to clinch a 1-0 lead after 32 minutes.
In the second set the Indians underlined their supremacy on the hardcourt surface of Moscow's Luzhniki Small Sports arena, breaking twice for a commanding 4-0 lead before the hosts chalked up their first point in the set.
The Russians fought but were unable to close the gap as the guests were in a class of their own, gaining a commanding two-set advantage after 37 more minutes of play.
The Indian veterans drove home their superiority in the third set, producing two more breaks to take the set and the match with ease.
On Friday, Russia took a comfortable 2-0 lead as Kunitsyn battled back from a set down to beat Somdev Devvarman 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-4, while Mikail Youzhny blanked Rohan Bopanna 6-4, 6-2, 6-3.

   Kiradech shares lead in Malaysian Open
AFP, Kuala Lumpur

Thailand's Kiradech Aphibarnrat is well positioned to win his first Asian Tour title after taking the joint third-round lead with Welshman Rhys Davies at the Maybank Malaysian Open on Saturday.
Kiradech, 20, birdied three of his last four holes for a four-under-par 68 and a three-day total of 11-under-par 205 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
Davies tied the Thai rising star with a battling 71, which included three birdies against a double bogey.
The final round of the two-million-dollar co-sanctioned Asian Tour and European Tour event is poised for a photo finish with two-time champion Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand (69), Soren Hansen of Denmark (69) and Koreans K.J. Choi (69) and Noh Seung-yul (67) a shot behind the leaders on 206.
The hefty Kiradech, a former junior world champion, nearly sank the first hole-in-one of the tournament when his six-iron tee shot on the 15th ended an inch behind the hole. Although disappointed to not win a car on offer, it sparked a stunning finish as he went on to birdie 17 and 18.
"My ball striking has been improving and that has played a part in my good performance. I missed a couple of putts on the back nine but I'm happy with the way I finished," said Kiradech.
"I couldn't see where my tee shot ended but heard the crowd shouting and when I walked over I saw the ball was about an inch from the hole. If I had won the car, I would have driven it back to Thailand," he added.
The big-hitting Kiradech hopes it will be third time lucky on Sunday as he has led twice previously going into the final round of an Asian Tour event, only to miss out with the finish line in sight.
Davies, who played 25 holes on Saturday, rallied with two birdies on the front nine. After a double bogey on 10 which was a result of an errant drive into the water hazard, he fought back with a birdie on 17 and then missed a makeable birdie chance on the last for the outright lead.
Vying for a third Maybank Malaysian Open title, reigning Asian Tour number one Thongchai mixed his card with five birdies against two bogeys to return with a 69 and was relishing the opportunity to win a record-equaling third Malaysian Open victory.

   Rajshahi scores 208 for five
UNB, Dhaka

Rajshahi Division scored 208 runs for five in 90 overs against Chittagong Division on the first day of the five-day final of the EBL 11th National Cricket League at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium here on Saturday.
Sent into bat first, holders Rajshahi Division made a good start scoring 84 runs in 29.5 overs in the opening stand by Jahirul Islam and Suhrawardy Shuvo that helped the team to score 200 plus runs in the first innings at the end of the first day.
Opener Jahirul Islam made a half century contributing 59 runs off 115 balls featuring nine fours while another opener cum national all rounder Suhrawardy Shuvo scored 32 runs in 98 balls hitting four fours.
One down Sabbir Rahman scored a patient 41 off 144 balls including two boundaries, number five Nasir Hossain made 28 off 64 balls with four fours while Anisur Rahman was in batting with 22 off 43 balls, featuring three fours and one six the stumps drawn.
Pacer Kazi Kamrul grabbed two Rajshahi wickets for 60 runs while Mahmudul Hasan, Elias Sunny and Alauddin Babu took one wicket each.
Brief score: Rajshahi Division first innings- 208 for 5 in 90 overs;
Jahurul Islam 59, Sabbir Rahman 41, Sohrawardy Shuvo 32, Nasir Hossain 28, Anisur Rahman batting 22, Farhad Hossain 11, Khaled Mashud batting 5, extras 10, Kazi Kamrul 2/60, Mahmudul Hasan 1/22, Elias Sunny 1/37, Alauddin Babu 1/48.

   Spain and Switzerland locked 1-1 in Davis Cup opener
AFP, Paris

David Ferrer and Stanislas Wawrinka stepped out of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer's shadows on Friday as defending champions Spain and Switzerland were locked 1-1 in their Davis Cup World Group opener.
Ferrer, the world number 16, eased past Marco Chiudinelli 6-2, 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 after Wawrinka, the world number 19, had come back to defeat Nicolas Almagro 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 on the clay courts of Logrono.
Four-time champions Spain have won their last 18 home ties in the Davis Cup and are also on a 20-tie winning streak on clay.
But they are playing without Nadal as well as fellow top stars Fernando Verdasco and Juan Carlos Ferrero while world number one Federer opted out of the first round clash for the Swiss.
That left Wawrinka, playing for the first time since becoming a father and having taken a six-week break, to carry his country's burden. "I dedicate this win to my daughter Alexia and my wife Ilham. It was not easy to leave my home after two weeks so I'm very happy," said Wawrinka.
In Belgrade, 32-time winners the United States, without world number eight Andy Roddick, were staring at defeat after losing both opening rubbers to Serbia.
Viktor Troicki saw off John Isner 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (5/7), 7-5, 6-4 before world number two Novak Djokovic defeated Sam Querrey 6-2, 7-6 (7/4), 2-6, 6-3.
France opened up a 2-0 lead over Germany in Toulon with Gael Monfils seeing off Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) before Jo-Wilfried Tsonga overcame a third set blip to defeat Benjamin Becker 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (2/7), 6-3. Germany have not come back from a 2-0 deficit for 50 years while it is 72 years since they last beat France.
The Czech Republic, last year's runners-up, took a 2-0 lead over Belgium in Bree with Tomas Berdych beating Olivier Rochus 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 and Radek Stepanek seeing off Xavier Malisse 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3).
India were outclassed by two-time champions Russia with Igor Kunitsyn battling from a set down to clinch a 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-4 win over Somdev Devvarman.

   Webb closes in on seventh Masters title
AFP, Gold Coast

Karrie Webb is in sight of a seventh Australian Ladies Masters title after bursting through to the third round lead at Royal Pines here on Saturday.
The Australian former world number one, 35, made a spectacular birdie out of a fairway bunker on her final hole on the way to an eight-under round of 64 and a three-round total of 15-under 201.
The seven-time major winner will go head-to-head with defending champion Katherine Hull of Australia in Sunday's final round.
Hull, who won last year's championship by five shots, shot a seven-under 65 to trail Webb by one shot on 14-under 202.
South Korean Lee Bo-Mee, who fired a course record nine-under 63, shared second place with Hull and will make up Sunday's final group.
"It was my best ball striking round this year," Webb said.
"I thought with a 64 I may have had a two or three shot lead, but the scoring has been very low."
Asked before the tournament if she thought Webb could win a seventh Masters, Hull said, "not if I've got anything to do with it," and she wasn't ready to back down from the statement on Saturday.
"That's exactly right, I'm going out there tomorrow to give it everything I've got," Hull said.
"It's great ... a lot of people have been waiting for this showdown and I'm really looking forward to it."
Lee has not carded a bogey in her 54 holes with sub-par rounds of 69-70-63.
A chat on the telephone late Friday with her Korean coach fixed a set-up flaw and she rolled in nine putts to take her tally of birdies for the three days to 14.
"It was a ball position thing but I had a tip from my coach and it really worked well," Lee said.
South Koreans Seo Hee-Kyung (69-68-66) and Ryu So-Yeon (70-67-66) were in a tie for fourth place on 13-under 203.
Halfway leader Amanda Blumenherst of the United States was two shots away in joint sixth on 11-under 205 with Taiwan's Yani Tseng.

   Villegas, Kim share PGA lead
AFP, Florida

American Anthony Kim fired a six-under 64 on Friday to match Colombia's Camilo Villegas for a share of the lead after the second round of the 5.6 million-dollar PGA Honda Classic.
Kim was among four players to match the tournament-low round on the Champion course on Friday, a score recorded by only two prior players, while Villegas fired a 66 for the second day in a row to join him on eight-under par 132.
"It's just a matter of time before I put four good ones together and start winning some golf tournaments again," Kim said.
Cold conditions and brisk winds blew in favor of players early in thre day.
"There's not too many birdies out there and you have some really tough holes," Villegas said. "You've just got to be careful." Fiji's Vijay Singh was a stroke back after a 66 with US veteran Jerry Kelly another stroke off the pace and Canada's Mike Weir, Australian Nathan Green, Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell and Americans Chez Reavie and Matt Every on 135.
Villegas was weary after playing last week at an US developmental tour event in Colombia.
"It has been a long week but it's been a good one," Villegas said. "It's a dream come true for my country. It's great for Latin American golf." Weir came to the event after watching Canada's Olympic ice hockey gold medal triumph over the United States in Vancouver last Sunday. He opened with a 15-foot birdie putt and had a bogey-free round.
"My game was pretty good," Weir said. "I hit most of the fairways and you know, scrambled a little bit out there, but you're going to do that on this course."
McDowell reached the final hole only one stroke off the lead but took a two-stroke penalty after putting his tee shot into a few inches of water. "It's a bit of a bittersweet end to the day," McDowell said. "I'm glad it's Friday. I've got all weekend to repair the damage."

   Ramsey vows to return after horror injury
AFP, London

Teenage Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey on Friday vowed to return a better, stronger player after seeing his season ended by a horror tackle which left him with a broken leg.
The Wales midfielder suffered a fractured tibia and fibula in a challenge with Stoke's Ryan Shawcross at the Brittania Stadium last weekend.
"It is very hard to take but I am young and have time on my side," said the 19-year-old. "I had an operation last weekend and, while it will take time for my leg to heal, I am determined and focused on overcoming this injury and hope to be back fitter and stronger than before."
Ramsey said he remembered clearly the incident which resulted in his leg hanging off at a sickening angle.
"I remember what happened and after the tackle went in I saw that my leg was broken and hanging at an angle," Ramsey said.
"I have seen images of the aftermath of the collision again but I don't want to dwell too much on the challenge as I can't change what has happened.
"It is difficult for me to take everything in at the moment. I thought I had been progressing well this season, so of course this is a real setback."
The teenager thanked Stoke's Glenn Whelan for his support, but he made no mention of Shawcross.
"I have been overwhelmed by the terrific support I have received from so many people, including fans from many different football clubs," said Ramsey.
"In particular, I would like to thank the medical team here at Arsenal for their efforts, as well as the staff at both hospitals.
"Glenn Whelan was especially kind and I really appreciated his immediate assistance on the pitch as well as the medical support from Stoke City. I also want to say thanks to Arsenal for helping my family this week.
"Last but certainly not least, I have been blown away by the fantastic messages of support from the Arsenal fans. I am proud to be an Arsenal player and your support has been incredibly touching."