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Leading News
Big fall in electricity
generation, supply level comes to 3750 mw
Country faces over 2000 mw power shortage
UNB, Dhaka
After a little bit of an improvement in recent days, the
country experienced a big fall in power production as a
number of power plants were forced to shut down over the
last three days due to technical faults.
Power generation came down to below 3,750 MW on Monday
from an average production level of 4400-4500 MW just
prior to it.
According to official sources, a little improvement in the
power supply situation had appeared in the first week of
May when bulk electricity supply was being withdrawn from
irrigation sites and diverted to the urban areas. The
power generation also reached 4500 MW after diversion of
gas supply from fertilizer factories that were shut down.
But two large generation units-450 MW Meghnaghat plant and
210 MW Ghorasal Unit-6 tripped this week after technical
glitches.
This sudden shutdown of the two major plants came as a big
blow for the Power Development Board (PDB). This has led
to a major drop in the overall power production, triggered
a rise in load-shedding across the country.
Apart from this, some other generation units at different
power stations were put on repair, maintenance or
rehabilitation programmes following technical problems.
The nagging gas shortage also forced some plants to reduce
production.
These also played a big role in aggravating the power
supply situation in and outside the capital.
The plants shut down recently on different grounds also
include Haripur IPP, one unit at Ashuganj combined cycle
plant, Haripur Unit-3 of SBU plant and 110-MW Khulna steam
turbine.
Official sources said the authorities concerned have been
resorting to more than 1500 MW load-shedding to manage the
situation for the last couple of days.
The peak-hour generation forecast was 3,748 MW on Monday
evening against a demand of 5,500-6,000 MW although
state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) says the demand
is around 5000 MW.
Many areas in the capital city had to experience
load-shedding every alternate hour throughout the day.
Such extensive load-shedding added an extra jolt to the
people's suffering, who are struggling as it is with the
peak summer's hot weather.
Cabinet
okays Int’l Mother Language Institute Bill 2010
UNB, Dhaka
The cabinet has approved the International Mother Language
Institute Bill 2010 (IMLI), which stipulates the country's
Prime Minister as its chief patron and the Education
Minister as the chairman of its governing body.
The cabinet meeting was held with Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina in the chair at the Bangladesh Secretariat on
Monday.
Briefing journalists at the Press Information Department,
Press Secretary to the Prime Minister Abul Kalam Azad said
according to the approved IMLI Act 2010, the institute
will be headed by a 23-member governing body.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on February 21 this year
formally inaugurated the International Mother Language
Institute with a declaration that her government wants to
make it an autonomous institution furnished with modern
facilities for research on all languages, equipped with a
world-class library.
The Press Secretary said the International Mother Language
Institute will be an autonomous institution which will run
lots of research to preserve the world's languages, as
well as all historical documents and souvenirs of the 1952
Language Movement. Azad said the initiative was first
taken to establish the International Mother Language
Institute by the last Awami League government.
The then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the presence of
the then UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on March 15, 2001
and the construction work was started from April of the
year as a part of the then government's mega plan to
create a 'cultural ring' centering Suhrawardi Uddayan,
Bangla Academy and Shilpakala Academy areas, Azad said .
But later the next BNP-Jamaat government had stopped the
construction work, Azad said.
The International Mother Language Institute has been
established as the continuation of the global community's
recognition of the great sacrifices of the Bangali people
to uphold the dignity of their mother language on February
21, 1952.
The nation first got global recognition for the glorious
history of the language movement when on 17 November,
1999, UNESCO, the cultural and educational wing of the UN,
declared 21st February as the International Mother
Language Day.
When Pakistan was born in 1947, 53% of its population
spoke Bangla. Meanwhile two other items on the agenda- a
proposal for establishing permanent membership of
Bangladesh in United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)
and cancelling the cabinet's decision to buy two
containers from Pakistan for Bangladesh Shipping
Corporation was withdrawn from the cabinet.
22
injured in BCL factional clashes in Dhaka and Ctg
UNB, Dhaka
At least 15 Bangladesh Chattra League (BCL) activists were
injured in a factional clash at Jagnnath University Monday
morning.
Police and witnesses said the clash ensued at about 11am
when the general students were staging demonstration
demanding recovery of 12 dormitories from the occupation
of outsiders.
At one stage, some BCL activists led by Kamrul Hasan
Ripon, president, university unit, attacked the general
students.
Hearing the information, rival group of BCL, led by
general secretary Gazi Abu Syed, attacked Kamrul group,
leaving 15 students injured.
Among the injured, five were admitted to National Medical
College Hospital.
On information, police rushed to the campus and arrested
Mamun and Babul of GS Gazi faction of BCL.
Eight platoons of police were deployed to avert any
untoward situation.
UNB adds from Ctg: Seven Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL)
activists were injured in a factional clash at Government
Commerce College in the city on Monday morning.
Police said when Qader group was creating pressure on the
college authority demanding quota in the honours course
admission another BCL faction, led by city BCL leader A Z
M Nasir Uddin, protested it, triggering a clash between
the two groups that left seven activists injured at about
11 am.
The injured were given treatment to a local clinic.
On information, police rushed to the spot and brought the
situation under control. Additional police have been
deployed at the campus to avert further trouble.
Chemical mixed fruits
HC orders action against unscrupulous traders
UNB, Dhaka
The High Court has asked law enforcers to sue unscrupulous
traders who are mixing toxic chemical ingredients in a bid
to ripen and preserve seasonal fruits prematurely under
the Special Powers Act.
Passing the interim order upon a Public Interest
Litigation (PIL) writ petition, an HC division bench on
Monday also issued a rule upon the government to explain
within three weeks why a directive should not be given to
take effective measures against the abusers to prevent
public health.
In addition, the HC division bench of Justice AHM
Shamsuddin Chow-dhury and Justice M Delwar Hossain issued
a five-point directive on the respondents.
Secretaries to the Ministries of Commerce, Food and Home
Affairs have been asked to form a monitoring cell to look
into the matter and submit a report before the court
within a fortnight, along with recommendations for
preventing the abuse of toxic chemical ingredients into
the seasonal fruits like mango, jackfruit and watermelon.
The Chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has
been asked to stop importing chemical-mixed fruits at all
import points and submit a follow up report within a
fortnight.
The DIG of Police in Rajshahi has been asked to post his
forces in commercial mango gardens in order to prevent use
of toxic chemicals.
The Directors General of BSTI and elite force RAB have
been asked to remain vigilant round the clock at fruit
store houses in the capital and test the fruits before
marketing.
Besides, the respondents have been asked to bring to a
halt the sale of contaminated fruits in the markets for
preventing public heath hazards. Human Rights and Peace
for Bangladesh (HRPB), a rights watchdog, filed the PIL
writ petition, after browsing recent newspaper reports on
the matter. Advocate Manzill Murshid appeared for the PIL
writ petitioner.
Another
killing on border
BSF kills 25 Bangladeshis in four months
TBT Report
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) killed one more
Bangladeshi along Bisakandi border in Goainghat upazila in
Sylhet on Monday as the killing spree on Bangladesh border
continues unabated despite India's repeated pledges to
stop such killings.
With this, BSF killed 25 Bangladeshi nationals in over
four months and 105 in last 13 months.
The number of Bangladeshis killed by BSF during the nine
years period from January 1, 2000 to May 10, 2010 stands
at 830. BSF also injured 860 and abducted 903 Bangladeshis
in the same period.
According to UNB News Agency, a farmer was shot dead by
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) along Bisakandi border
in Goainghat upazila in Sylhet on Monday.
The victim was identified as Jamal Uddin, 28, son of Abdul
Matin of the village.
BDR sources said, BSF men of Nayabazar camp shot Jamal at
about 4 pm along the main pillar no-1262 when he went
there to bring cattle, leaving him dead on the spot.
A tense situation has been prevailing along the border
following the incident.
The killings of unarmed Bangladeshis by the BSF on the
border are continuing in clear violation of the spirit of
good neighborliness as well as international law and
despite repeated pledges by the Indian authorities to stop
it. In every meeting between BSF and BDR and also between
the higher level officials of the two countries, the
Indian side assures that killing of Bangladeshis by its
forces on the border would come to an end immediately. But
this pledge is seldom implemented.
CCC polls
schedule to be announced today
Army to be deployed in limited way: CEC
UNB, Dhaka
The army will be deployed in a limited way to ensure
peaceful election to Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) and
the polls schedule will be announced today (Tuesday) noon.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Dr ATM Shamsul Huda told
this to the reporters after a meeting with top officials
of the law enforcing agencies at his office today
(Monday).
The last CCC elections were held on May 9, 2005.
The CEC said the elections to the CCC will be held on the
existing voter list.
He said one battalion plus army will be deployed for five
days, three days ahead of the election, on the polling day
and the day after.
Replying to a question, Huda said the army will inspect
all the 41 wards of the CCC and map out their plan of
deployment.
He said the election commission has a plan to introduce
e-voting in the CCC election.
If it is not possible for the entire election, the
commission may introduce e-voting for one ward as a model,
the CEC said, adding BUET experts will visit Chittagong
City to study the possibility.
Asked about the recovery of illegal arms before the
elections, Huda said it is a continued process and
checkpoints will be in place before the elections.
IGP Nur Mohammad and chiefs of different law enforcing
agencies attended the meeting.
The IGP told reporters that the meeting discussed ways to
ensure free, fair and peaceful elections in Chittagong
City Corporation.
Back Page
PM urges Italy to recruit more
Bangladeshis
UNB, Dhaka
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has requested Italy to
recruit more Bangladeshi migrant-workers, citing their
hardworking and law-abiding nature.
She made the request when Italian deputy Foreign Minister
Stefania Craxi called on her at her Ganobhaban on Monday.
The Italian Deputy For-eign Minister praised Bangladeshi
people who are living in Italy, describing them as "very
hardworking".
Press Secretary to the Prime Minister Abul Kalam Azad, who
was present, briefed reporters after the meeting.
The Prime Minister said that she herself and her party,
the Awami League, are always against any sort of terrorism
and extremism.
She said it was not possible for one country alone to
eradicate terrorism, underscoring the need for unity in
the effort to do so.
In this connection, she said that during her previous
tenure, her government had taken various effective steps
to root out terrorism from the country.
Hasina said that the present government wants to free
Bangladesh as well as the wider region from the grip of
poverty.
Stefania Craxi praised the Prime Minister for the
objectives outlined in her speech on food security at the
FAO Summit held in Italy earlier this year.
The two women also discussed bilateral issues,
particularly enhancement of trade and investment, and
human rights.
Hasina said that when she took office the country was
already immersed in various problems including power, gas
and water.
She mentioned that due to the timely and effective
measures of her government, the power and water crises are
now "tolerable".
She also said that the present government is
pro-agriculture and has already taken various effe-ctive
measures for the welfare of agriculture.
Khaleda whitened her
‘white money’: BNP
UNB, Dhaka
Once again rejecting the ruling Awami League's
allegations, the opposition BNP Monday said the party
chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia 'white-ned
her white money' , and not a single unit of 'black' money
in 2007.
Addressing a press briefing at the BNP's Nayapaltan
central office this afternoon, BNP chairperson's adviser
Adv Ahmed Azam Khan, who also acts as her lawyer, said the
party chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia
whitened her white money under a NBR project tiled "White
Money Whitening" under an SRO in 2007.
Ahmed Azam outright rejected the Awami League joint
secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif's comments on Sunday over
Khaleda Zia's whitening money, terming them as 'totally
false'.
He said there is a big difference between black money and
undeclared money from legal sources, contending that
undeclared money from legal sources is not black money.
Apparently, Khaleda whit-ened undeclared money from legal
sources under this scheme. In the case of 'black' money,
the sources from which the money was earned do not have to
be declared at all, whereas in the case of 'whitening
white money', the sources of income are declared. He then
revealed the sources of the income Khaleda declared. One
of the sources of her undeclared money was Tk 10 lakh from
Ziaur Rahman' s pension fund and a gratuity fund that was
given by the then government to Khaleda Zia after the
death of President Ziaur Rahman. Khaleda deposited the
amount in a bank as an FDR.
The other source of Khaleda's apparently legal money was
the rent on her Gulshan residence, given to her by the
then President Justice Abdus Sattar, Ahmed Azam told the
reporters. Asked about why Khaleda Zia had not paid tax on
this income earlier, he said she was not completely in
tune with the income tax laws in the country, like many
citizens including physicians and engineers. He said
matters of filing income tax are very complicated
worldwide BNP secretary general Khandaker Delwar Hossain,
who was present at the press briefing, said the government
is carrying out a false campaign and resorting to dirty
politics in a bid to undermine the image of the BNP and
its leadership. He said no-one has been able to prove 'a
single black taka' against Khaleda's name. By contrast,
Delwar reminded that allegations of having earned income
from illegal sources remained against the incumbent Prime
Minister and cases were filed against her (Hasina) in this
regard.
BPC delegates to
visit Singapore, Malaysia to negotiate diesel, furnace oil
purchase
BSS, Dhaka
A four-member delegation of Bangladesh Petroleum
Corporation (BPC) leaves here for Singapore and Malaysia
today (Tuesday) to procure petroleum products to meet the
increase demand of fuel in the country.
According to the BPC, it needed to raise its import by
more than 40 per cent as the government plans to generate
1350 MW of electricity from rental power plants that would
be run by diesel and furnace oil. BPC chairman Anwarul
Karim will lead the team while the other three members of
the delegation are joint secretary of the energy division,
director (operation) of the BPC and its secretary. "We
plan to negotiate with the oil exporting countries as we
have to feed the proposed diesel-furnace oil based power
plants," BPC Chairman told BSS Monday describing the visit
as a regular one.
Earlier, the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB)
officials presented a paper at the energy ministry and
sought its support to run the diesel and furnace oil fired
power plants.
The paper said BPDB required around 4 lakh to 5 lakh
metric tons of fuel to meet the demand of the proposed
power plants. Bangladesh consumes around 3.5 million tons
of oil every year at a cost of between $2.5 billion to
$3.5 billion. Anwarul Karim said they would negotiate with
other countries to take a right decision in procuring
petroleum products to minimize the cost of import.
Protest against
killings by BSF
Police lathicharge Jamaat activists, 9 arrested
UNB, Rajshahi
Police lathi charged and broke a human chain of Jamaat at
Gorhanga rail gate in the city and arrested 9 activists
Monday.
Rajshahi units of Jamaat and Shibir organized the human
chain at 2 pm to protest the killing of innocent
Bangladeshi nationals by Indian BSF and their in inhuman
activities on the border. More than 50 people were shot
dead by BSF on the border during the last four months.
Witnesses said police resorted to lathi charge and broke
the human chain. Nine activists were arrested from the
spot. Produced before the court they were set free after
fine of Tk 200 each. Boalia Model Thana officer said the
human chain was created blocking traffic movement.
Besides, Jamaat did not take prior permission for its
programme of human chain.
City Jamaat condemned the police action on peaceful human
chain. It said the police action manifested that the
government is intolerant to criticism of Indian BSF
killing of innocent Bangladesh nationals and promoting
smuggling of drug because of submissive policy towards its
alien masters. The activists arrested and fined by the
court are Shafiqul Islam, Mokhlesur Rahman (1),
Aktharuzz-aman, Jahangir Alam, Yamin Ali, Raviul Islam,
Mokhlesur Rahman (2), and Sarwar Hossain.
RMG workers
block Dhaka-Sylhet highway
UNB, Narayanganj
Garment workers ransacked a factory and blocked Dhaka-Sylhet
highway for four hours demanding timely payment of their
salaries at Borpa under Rupganj thana here Monday morning.
Police said workers of Antim Knitting and Garment demanded
salary in the morning.
As the garment authority denied to pay their salary today
and asked the workers to take salary on May 25 they got
furious and ransacked the furniture and windowpanes of the
factory. The untruly workers took to the street and
vandalized 8/10 vehicles plying on the road, leaving six
passengers injured. The garment workers demonstrated on
the road and demanded payment of salary by 10th of every
month. They also put barricade on Dhaka-Sylhet highway at
8:30 am, halting traffic on both sides and causing
sufferings to the passengers.
They put off the barricade at 12:30 pm after the factory
owners rushed to the spot and assured them of paying their
salaries by May 15.
Construction of Bhairab Bridge
ACC team quizes Mannan Bhuiyan
UNB, Dhaka
Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) on Monday quizzed Abdul
Mannan Bhuiyan, former LGRD Minister of last BNP-led four
party alliance government, in connection with alleged
excess payment of Tk 100 crore to the construction
contractor of the Bhairab Bridge.
Official sources said an ACC team led by its assistant
director Harun-or-Rashid went to the Gulshan residence of
Mannan Bhuiyan, also former secretary general of BNP, at
about 11:00 am as he was sick. The team interrogated
Bhuiyan for about one and a half hour.
Earlier, ACC served notices to nine former ministers of
the then BNP-led alliance government to come to the
commission's office to explain their role in respect of
the alleged excess payment.
But only Barrister Nazmul Huda went to the ACC office to
give his side of the story.
ACC sources said former ministers - Barrister Aminul Haque,
AKM Mosharraf Hossain, Altaf Hossain Chowdhury and
Salauddin Ahmed - did not receive the notice due to change
of their residence addresses.
Of the other former ministers, MK Anwar received the ACC
notice late, Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain wanted time to
come the ACC office and M Shamsul Haq is now away from the
country.
ACC sources said the commission will file cases if they
find any irregularities after completion of the
investigation.
A UK-based construction company was paid Tk 100 crore in
excess after three years of the completion of Bhairab
Bridge.
Editorial
Sugar for Ramadan
The
government is getting ready for ensuring supply of sugar to
the people during the holy month of Ramadan while the sugar
syndicates are also allegedly preparing for earning additional
profits over the item in the holy month. The government has
decided to import 25,000 metric tons of sugar to meet the
demand during the Ramadan. The cabinet committee on purchase
on Sunday approved the import of sugar to keep the market
stable during the holy month.
Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase at a meeting, presided
over by Finance Minister AMA Muhith, Sunday approved the
procurement proposal of the Industries Ministry. The
state-owned Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation (BSFIC)
will import sugar. The Singapore-based Agrico International
will supply the bulk sugar at US$ 514.95 per metric ton. The
meeting was informed that BSFIC has now a stock of 37,000
metric tons of sugar as against the annual requirement of
about 14 lakh tons. Bulk of the country's requirement - about
80 percent, is supplied by the private refineries. Officials
said the BSFIC initially invited tender for import of 50,000
tons of sugar in 2 lots. But the price quoted by the supplier
for the second lot was relatively much higher. This prompted
the Industries Ministry to reduce the import of one lot of
25,000 metric tons.
According to a report by the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh
on Sunday, the price of sugar dropped by 3.45 percent over the
last one month and stood at Tk 40 to Tk 44 per kg. However,
compared to one-year back, the sugar price was 7.69 percent
higher yesterday.
It may be pointed out that there is usually higher demand for
sugar during the month of Ramadan every year and this causes
spurt in the prices as the business syndicates go all out to
earn lofty profit. The same thing happened last year also. On
the eve of the Eid-ul-Fitre last year the price of sugar had
shot up to Tk. 60 per Kg as against Tk. 42 per kg four weeks
ago. Taking the advantage of the higher demand for sugar in
the month of Ramadan, dishonest businessmen extracted extra
money from the consumers by raising the price of sugar
abruptly. Wholesalers reportedly procured sugar at the rate of
Tk. 39 per kg from the refiners, but sold it to retailers at
the rate of Tk. 55 per kg to earn lofty profit. And the
retailers sold sugar to consumers at the rate of at least Tk.
60 per kg. There was visibly no body to answer why the
wholesalers after purchasing sugar at Tk 39 sold it at Tk. 55
per kg holding the consumers hostage to their greed.
While the rhetoric continued among the refiners, wholesalers
and retailers over the exuberantly high price of sugar and the
consumers were forced to bear the brunt of the soaring prices
of sugar last year, the government apparently was sitting
almost idle as helpless spectator. In the light of that sad
experience, it may be difficult for many to be hopeful that
the government decision to import only 25 tons of sugar this
year will be quite enough to stabilize the sugar market in the
face of the market manipulation by the sugar syndicates who
are allegedly waiting to exploit the occasion. In view of
this, the government should take all necessary measure,
alongside importing increased quantity of sugar, to keep the
market stable by thwarting the evil designs of the syndicates
and ensure smooth supply and distribution of sugar in the
market
Severe
load-shedding
Most
of the city dwellers experienced another day of severe
load-shedding on Sunday as most areas of the capital city
passed off without electricity supply following a drop of 600
MW of power generation due to tripping of a number of power
plants during the last three days. The most affected areas
including Basabo, Rampura, Khilgaon, Moghbazar, Jatrabari,
Lalbagh, Dhanmondi and Mirpur suffered frequent power
load-shedding of over 2,000MW. At some places load-shedding
continued for long eight hours causing unbearable sufferings
to the people in these days of scorching heat.
Generation of electricity by the Power Development Board
dropped to 3,400MW in the evening peak hours on Sunday. The
power generation was around 3,700MW on Saturday whereas it was
over 4,000MW last week. Due to the drop in generation, the gap
between demand and supply reached over 2,000MW on Sunday
evening as against the demand for electricity was over
5,500MW. According to PDB officials, despite considerable
improvement in the situation in the last few weeks, the drop
in power generation due to closure of a number of power plants
has resulted in severe outages again.
Parliament members elected from the capital and adjacent areas
had expressed the fear that the city dwellers may turn violent
over the severe power and water crises and may burst into
anger if these can not be resolved immediately. They expressed
this fear at a meeting with the Minister for Local Government
and Rural Development (LGRD) Syed Ashraful Islam on March 30.
The fear expressed by the MPs has started coming true with
angry people at different places demonstrating for supply of
power and water. The government is trying in various ways to
ease the power crisis, but it will take time for their efforts
to yield results. People are suffering now and they are
restive for immediate resolution of the crisis. So, the
government should do everything possible to ease the critical
situation.
Analysis
Afghans are wary of American endgame
Karzai had helped provoke a rift with
Washington after a string of anti-Western statements,
including accusing the international community of corrupting
the presidential election.
Alistair Scutton
Away from all the
probable pomp, ceremony and firm handshakes in Afghan
President Hamid Karzai's trip to Washington next week, many
Afghans will be seeking a strong signal that the US will not
cut and run from its 9-year-old war.
More than anything, US President Barack Obama's deadline to
start withdrawing troops by July 2011 after a surge this year
has reminded many Afghans of how Washington effectively
abandoned the country in 1989-90 after the Soviet army were
forced to retreat. That feeling has been exacerbated by a
public spat between Obama and Karzai this year, troubles in a
stepped-up US-led offensive against the Taleban, as well as
mutterings from the US ambassador that the Afghan leader is
not a reliable partner. It is a sentiment that some say could
further pressure Karzai to reach early peace deals with the
Taleban, something that worries the United States as its
prepares an offensive involving at least 23,000 NATO and
Afghan troops in Kandahar.
"We have to have a commitment to ensuring strategic
partnership," said Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak. "There
should be no faltering. This is exactly what the enemy expects
- that the interest of the international community will wane."
Washington has played down any deadline, saying they would
withdraw troops only if conditions were right. Some Afghan
experts see the deadline just as a way of Washington
pressurizing Karzai to get his act together.
But the perception among Afghans is different. "When you start
talking about exit strategies, these deadlines, these are
interpreted by Afghans in another way and encourage the other
side. Enemies expect a repeat performance.
It makes Afghans remind themselves of '89, '90," Wardak added.
Karzai had helped provoke a rift with Washington after a
string of anti-Western statements, including accusing the
international community of corrupting the presidential
election.
Washington, on the other hand, is increasingly critical of
corruption in the Afghan government and the ability of
authorities to help implement billions of dollars of aid.
Karzai knows he still needs the Americans, analysts say, if
only to speed up a transition to fuller sovereignty and
appease Afghans critical of US forces after they mistakenly
killed scores of civilians in recent years. "The quicker we
get enablers, the quicker the transition," Wardak said,
referring to NATO help for the Afghan national army ranging
from transport to reconnaissance capabilities.
"But the transition cannot be premature." At the same time,
Obama wants to stop Afghanistan from becoming a political
obstacle ahead of congressional elections in November when
voter anxiety over high unemployment and a fragile economy is
already expected to take a toll. "One of his achievements from
Washington would be to buy time with the United States," said
Daoud Sultanzoy, a lawmaker.
"Afghanistan is becoming an increasingly hard sell." "The US
government may be patient for now, but what about the US
people, the European people?" There is evidence that regional
neighbors like India and Pakistan have already taken an
endgame game for granted, and are juggling diplomatically to
ensure influence in a post US world. Afghans too believe this
will eventually happen.
"If Americans or NATO see that they can't defeat the Taleban,
they will run away as the Americans abandoned us after the
Soviets departed and left us a legacy of war and bloodshed,"
said Noor Mohammad, a government worker in Kandahar. Hashmat
Ghani Ahmadzai, an Afghan analyst and politician, said Afghans
were already preparing for an endgame game.
"On the local, mosque, village level, people are reaching out
to the Taleban because they eventually believe the Americans
will leave," Ghani said. "And that is filtering up to the
government." Karzai may be in for a hard time in Washington,
especially among members of Congress. Little has been done,
many observers say, to show improvements in governance as
billions of dollars in aid flow. US officials say the meet
will focus on corruption.
Despite this, the Afghan leader hopes a good meeting will
allow him to return home stronger politically to push for
talks with the Taleban at a national peace assembly "jirga"
planned from May 29. The Taleban has so far dismissed Karzai's
efforts.
The US administration remains wary of such overtures to the
Taleban leadership. If anything is done at all, they would
like it from a position of strength after the Kandahar
offensive. But Karzai may see it as insurance for his
political future. "There is a danger Karzai will reach out
prematurely to the Taleban," said Sultanzoy.
So, many Afghan policy makers hope Washington will send out a
strong message of support.
"We want him (Obama) to prove the partnership. If again they
want to repeat the same mistake, next time they will pay
triple," said Shukria Barakzai, an independent lawmaker.
Radiation
dangers: Indian lessons
Under the Atomic Energy (Safe Disposal of Radioactive
Waste) Rules 1987, any venture using radioactive material
must appoint a radiological safety officer. This happens
rarely, but the AERB doesn't enforce the rules.
Praful Bidwai
Three
weeks after a Delhi scrap dealer was exposed to cobalt-60
and developed acute radiation sickness, the radioisotope
was finally traced to a chemistry laboratory of Delhi
University. Meanwhile, one of the 11 exposed scrap-workers
has died. The condition of another two is reportedly
grave, and that of the rest, serious.
The episode highlights the utterly irresponsible conduct
of the authorities, including Delhi University and the
Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. The tragedy also
underscores the infuriatingly poor capacity of Indian
agencies to cope with mishaps, in particular damage caused
by ionising radiation, an especially insidious poison
that's invisible, intangible and poorly understood.
In February, the University prematurely auctioned to a
scrap dealer a gamma irradiator, the apparatus containing
cobalt-60, which had been imported in 1968. A University
committee certified that disposing of the entire 300 kg
assembly, including cobalt pencils and lead containers,
would be safe. The poisoning was revealed six weeks
afterwards.
It's extraordinary that a committee of science professors
assumed that the cobalt-60, a powerful source with 3,000
Curies (a unit of radiation), had ceased to be hazardous.
The half-life of this radioisotope-the time during which
it naturally decays to reach half its original mass-is
5.27 years.
This means that about 10-20 Curies would still remain even
after 42 years. And even one-billionth of a Curie is
harmful to humans. For instance, the US Environmental
Protection Agency sets a limit of 8- to 20-trillionths of
a Curie for water. All this information is available in
the public domain.
The University committee's decision to auction the
irradiator was indefensibly unscientific and cavalier. Its
members must be severely punished for endangering the
lives of innocent and poor scrap-industry workers.
But the other authorities haven't conducted themselves
exemplarily either. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board
took its own time to track the irradiator's total of 16
cobalt needles. It's not the AERB's "scientists"-in
reality technicians, trained to handle simple instruments,
much like electricity meter-readers-but the police, who
tracked the cobalt-60 source.
In order that no case of radiation injury goes undetected,
the whole chain of transactions involving the irradiator
must be established. Three other scrap traders were
involved. Groups of workers were exposed to the cobalt-60
at different intensities for different durations. Good,
responsible science requires identifying the number
exposed and extent of their exposure, so they can be
treated over a long period.
There is another crucial issue. The irradiator assembly
was reportedly sent from Delhi to Rewari in Haryana, where
it was melted in a furnace. It's imperative to establish
the precise timing of the melting to estimate exposure
duration and intensity.
It's after the lead cladding was removed that the full
intensity of radiation from the cobalt would come into
play. Everyone who handled, cut, transported or stored the
needles would have been exposed. They must all be tracked
down.
However, the AERB hasn't used a scientific model to map
the transactions and processes through which the
irradiator went and to estimate the overall exposure or
the radiation doses received by the seriously injured,
long-hospitalised seven survivors-despite the help it got
from the Canadian exporter of the irradiator.
This is of a piece with the functioning of the AERB and
its parent, the Department of Atomic Energy.
The extremely sloppy, inefficient, and unsafe DAE has
never met a target or completed a major project without a
typical cost overrun of 200 percent-plus. By its own
projections-and generous subsidies-it should have
installed 43,500 MW of nuclear power by 2000 and over
50,000 MW by now. The current installed nuclear capacity
of 4,100 MW-3 percent of India's total electricity
capacity-was achieved at the cost of the health and safety
of thousands of people.
Shielded by the Atomic Energy Act 1962, the DAE isn't
accountable to the public. It has a poor safety culture.
The AERB, set up to regulate the DAE's installations for
safety, has inherited and imbibed its callousness and
become its lapdog. The AERB has no independent personnel,
equipment or budget, nor even the will, to gain functional
autonomy within the DAE.
The AERB's performance as the regulator of all non-DAE
radiation-related equipment and activities has also been
shoddy, irresponsible and corrupt. The AERB-created in
1983-has no full record of radiation-emitting equipment or
activities going back to the 1950s. Its current records
are also sloppy and its reports incomplete.
There are 50,000 X-ray machines, 735 radiotherapy units,
1,754 industrial radiography units, and thousands of
apparatuses and radiochemicals used in physical,
biological, chemical and agricultural experiments in
India's public and private laboratories and other
facilities.
The AERB is meant to track all these. Under the Atomic
Energy Act, it alone is authorised to finally dispose of
all radioactive material, which it's legally empowered and
mandated to collect. It only rarely monitors regulation
enforcement. It doesn't order labs to hand over to it
material for final disposal. It doesn't have the
personnel, will or culture to track "use-by" dates of
X-ray units.
Under the Atomic Energy (Safe Disposal of Radioactive
Waste) Rules 1987, any venture using radioactive material
must appoint a radiological safety officer. This happens
rarely, but the AERB doesn't enforce the rules.
The AERB is supposed to regularly inspect 62,110
installations in 3,210 institutions. It conducted only 110
inspections last year. Of the 16 cases of theft or loss of
radiation-related devices reported since 2000, it solved
only three.
Scientists in three Delhi-based institutes complain that
the AERB never provides technological support or guidance
and ignores requests for help with radioactivity disposal.
Sometimes, AERB personnel "informally" encourage
persistent inquirers to dump the waste. On their rare
visits to an institution/lab, they expect to be wined and
dined or bribed outright.
The AERB hasn't installed radiation monitors at all major
ports and airports. It refuses to monitor radioactive
waste-dumping at Alang, the world's ship-breaking capital,
itself a big disaster. Now it wants to transfer its
responsibility for handling radioactive waste to scrap
dealers, whom it proposes to train.
So when Minister of State Prithviraj Chauhan claims the
AERB is highly efficient and can account for "every gramme"
of radioactive material in India, and hence that the Delhi
cobalt-60 was illegally imported, he talks through his
hat.
The AERB's failure has allowed metallic products recycled
in India to be extensively contaminated with
radioactivity. Many countries have recently refused
shipments of Indian-made steel after they were found
contaminated, including 67 shipments to the US since 2003.
Shockingly, the controversial nuclear liability Bill
solely empowers this very AERB to declare whether or not a
nuclear mishap has happened, for which the public may be
compensated.
The AERB must be made answerable or, better, replaced with
a competent and independent agency accountable to
Parliament, the public and the Right to Information Act.
It should strictly license all nuclear- and
radiation-related activities and establishments for
safety; monitor their radioactive material stocks, safety
practices and precautionary approaches; and must secure
the safe disposal of radioisotopes.
The only way to ensure that the agency does its job is to
make it accountable to Parliamentary and public
oversight-beginning now. Or else, we'll have more
radiation disasters on a horrendous scale.
The writer, a former newspaper editor, is a researcher
and peace and human-rights activist based in Delhi. Email:
prafulbidwai1@yahoo.co.in
Viewpoints
Dangerous ideologues
If Faisal
was angry about something, it's no more than what young people
the world over are angry about - the various conflicts and
wars that affect their own countries.
Maajid Nawaz
The
latest terror escapade in New York's Times Square, involving
Pakistani-American Faisal Shahzad, once again corrects a major
misconception in the popular view surrounding the roots of
globalised Islamist extremism. It also reveals a worrying gap,
indeed a gaping hole, in both US and Pakistani policy related
to this area.
Contrary to popular mythology prevalent both here and in the
West, Islamist extremism doesn't merely arise as a result of
poor academic education, lack of opportunity, poor social
mobility or poverty. Admittedly, such factors may contribute
somewhat to this phenomenon, but wealth, social status and
social mobility form no cast-iron guarantee against the
process of radicalisation - just as they failed in my own
history of 13 years inside an extremist organisation.
Faisal was not a sexually frustrated, robed, bearded,
religious, provincial, illiterate villager. Nor was he left
wanting in terms of social mobility, having recently been made
a citizen of the US. In fact, he was privately educated, born
to a privileged family, was the son of a respected former air
force officer and was married to a seemingly integrated wife
with two children - in short, Faisal had every opportunity to
succeed in life.
Yes, he may have grown up in Pakistan and thus witnessed
troubled times due to ongoing conflicts in neighbouring
Afghanistan, and yes, he may have ended up mismanaging his
finances, but the typical analysis that all avenues of protest
and social mobility had been closed to him is not easily made
here. Unless of course, we now wish to say that mere anger
about something, anything, is sufficient to turn our Pakistani
Muslim youth into sociopathic terrorists because they are
simply unable to manage their anger.
If Faisal was angry about something, it's no more than what
young people the world over are angry about - the various
conflicts and wars that affect their own countries. Are
Muslims the only ones growing up observing a war next door?
But Faisal was obviously moved enough to try and murder
innocent civilians who had nothing to do with this war.
So the question arises as to why people who have less of a
reason to complain end up becoming extremists? The reason for
this is simple: they adopt an ideology that acts as a catalyst
for tenuously linking and exaggerating any local grievances on
the world stage as part of a grand conspiracy against Islam
and Muslims.
I call this ideology Islamism, which in simple terms, is the
belief that a never-ending war is waging between Muslims and
non-Muslims and that a singular interpretation of Islam should
be enforced over society through totalitarian state control.
Such ideologies, by definition, appeal to those who are able
to handle pseudo-intellectual and ideologically driven
conversation. By this same definition, they also apply to
those facing an acute identity crisis. Both these factors
usually occur in the socially mobile middle classes who have
the most exposure to changes in social dynamics brought about
by rapid globalisation.
A cursory glance at history testifies to the role that the
educated middle classes play and have played in the history of
ideological extremism. Late 19th century Russian anarchists,
the Peruvian Shining Path, the Sri Lankan Tamil Tigers, the
Basque separatists of ETA and now our very own Islamist
extremists all owe their origins to educated middle-class
students. Bin Laden the engineer and his deputy Dr Zawahiri
the paediatrician are no madressah students. The engineer
Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, alleged mastermind behind the 9/11
attacks, and Omar Sheikh, the LSE student accused of having
murdered Daniel Pearl in Karachi, were no religious mullahs.
This is not to absolve the mullahs of responsibility, but to
emphasise that the ideologues and leaders of Islamist
movements have always been, and will continue to be, members
of the secular educated, socially mobile, intelligent and
articulate middle classes. The founder of Jamaat-i-Islami here
in the subcontinent was a journalist and the founder of
Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood was a school teacher.
In a recent survey conducted by Dr Sageman it was found that
of a global sample study of jihadists, 62 per cent were
university graduates - that's almost twice as much as the
average of graduates in the English population. Those few
extremists that do graduate from madressahs are the minority
and are usually the followers, not the leaders.
The gaping hole that this observation leaves in terms of
policy is that both in Pakistan and in the US, there is no
counter-extremism strategy to speak of. A counter-terrorism
strategy does exist, but before somebody resorts to violence
and thus becomes a terrorist they have to adopt an extremist
mindset. At present there is no policy in place to challenge
and refute such a mindset on a societal level. This includes
opening up debate on such issues in the public domain and
empowering our educated youth, students and young
professionals in universities and urban centres across the
country, with the intellectual tools to question and contest
extremist ideas.
We cannot have it both ways. If we argue that war and
regressive legislation are not the way forward, then we must
adopt an effective engagement strategy that empowers civil
society, media and governments to challenge extremist
propaganda and address grievances in a coordinated manner.
This involves a good, hard look at our school curriculum,
responsible reporting on such issues in the media, a national
de-radicalisation strategy for prisoners convicted on
terrorism charges, translation and distribution of
counter-extremism literature (from Pakistan and the Arab
world) and finally, the utilisation of former Islamist
extremists to launch a credible challenge to extremist
narratives.
In implementing the above, there is little time to lose. Those
who have been propagating the Islamist ideology and
manipulating grievances have already had a head start by
several decades. Only by consistently working to make Islamism
as unfashionable as fascism do we have a chance to succeed in
this struggle of ideas.
The writer is director of the Quilliam Foundation, a
counter-extremism think tank based in the UK.
information@quilliamfoundation.org
Stuck with
the spoils
Many of
Europe’s written constitutions are in fact modelled on the
uncodified British version. It may be messy, but it isn't
broken: don't fix it.
William Underhill
Pity
the poor British. The outcome of this week's election-a
hung Parliament with no party winning a majority of seats
in the House of Commons-has created plenty of
uncertainties to trouble the public (and the markets). One
question in particular demands an urgent answer: who gets
the chance to form the next government? That's not so
simple.
It's the first time since 1974 that an election has
produced such an inconclusive result, and Britain lacks
the experience or the formal rulebook that might offer
definitive guidance. In fact, the nation doesn't even have
a constitution. What subsists in its place is a hodgepodge
of statutes and time-honored conventions without the force
of law.
Even its admirers admit that the system is little more
than the messy product of centuries of history. "It's a
convoluted, back-of-the-envelope sort of thing that's
difficult to explain without weeks of opportunity," says
Catherine Haddon of the Institute for Government, a London
think tank. "It's a fuzzy mix of the arcane and the
practical."
Sure, the present case is covered by a draft Civil Service
manual, published earlier this year, that sets out an
understanding of what should happen. Put simply: even if a
ruling party wins fewer seats than its leading rival (the
way Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Labour Party won fewer
seats than David Cameron's Tories), the prime minister can
stay in office while trying to form his own coalition with
smaller parties before the new Parliament first meets.
In the more formal words of the manual: "An incumbent
government is entitled to await the meeting of the new
parliament to see if it can command the confidence of the
House of Commons or to resign if it becomes clear that it
is unlikely to command that confidence." So Brown could
stay in Downing Street despite his trouncing at the polls-Labour
won just 258 seats to the Conservatives' 306-making the
election seem awfully pointless.
But Cameron sees matters differently. Before the election,
he had already made clear his position: "There is
convention and there is practice, and they are not always
quite the same thing."
That means Cameron has his own interpretation of the
precedents. He thinks that if he can strike a deal with
the Liberal Democrats, who gained 57 seats, he deserves
the keys to Downing Street. Only hours after the last vote
was counted, he was talking publicly of inviting the
Liberal Democrats into a "collaborative government."
But would a clearer set of rules, set out in a
constitution, smooth the business of transferring power?
Certainly the general idea of a written constitution has
powerful supporters. Both the Labour and the Liberal
Democrat election manifestoes mentioned the possibility of
drafting a constitution as part of a wider overhaul of the
British political system. Brown himself is a long-term
enthusiast.
On the other hand, it's far from clear whether a neat
constitutional code would help resolve the issues now
facing the big parties. The question of how to form a
government in a parliament with no majority is ignored in
the constitutions of the many European countries where
indecisive elections are standard, says Robert Hazell, who
heads the constitution unit at University College, London.
Instead, it's left to loose conventions that allow a more
flexible approach.
In fact, as Hazell observes, constitutions often have
nothing to say about some critical areas of government
practice. "There is nothing in the American constitution
that says that the Supreme Court can strike down
legislation from Congress; it's just a hugely important
convention," he says. Besides, many of Europe's written
constitutions are in fact modelled on the uncodified
British version. It may be messy, but it isn't broken:
don't fix it.
-Newsweek
Limits of China’s charm
China needs a mature strategic dialogue, particularly with
the EU. This will not rescue the partnership, but at least
it could help define common interests, identify policy
options, and create the conditions to achieve results.
Jonathan Holslag
To
many people in the West, China seems to have gone from a
country that "keeps a cool head and maintains a low
profile," in Deng Xiaoping's formulation, to one that
loves a good international bust-up. Putting an Australian
mining executive behind bars for ten years, squeezing out
Google, keeping the European Union at bay for an important
dialogue, and letting a mid-level official wag his finger
at US President Barack Obama at the Copenhagen Climate
summit is not, after all, the best way to convince
partners of your constructive intentions.
Nor is it reassuring to recall that China, up to now, has
been stubbornly watering down sanctions on Iran, investing
in major offensive military systems, and pillorying
Western leaders for irresponsible financial policies and
protectionism. But the point in reciting this litany is
not so much to highlight China's wayward behaviour as it
is to demonstrate the dilemma in which the country finds
itself: if it behaves like a "normal" power, the world
will forget the many hundreds of millions of people that
it still needs to pull out of poverty. The Chinese
leadership seems to be aware of this dilemma and is not,
in fact, eager to be dragged into fierce competition with
the West or its neighbours. During the recent National
People's Congress, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao stressed
that China should not punch above its weight, and that the
People's Republic still needs stability if it is to become
a society that offers a decent life to all of its
citizens.
In recognition of this, China has stepped up its efforts
to mend fences. President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington
was a clear attempt to de-escalate tensions with the US
over American arms sales to Taiwan, the renminbi's
exchange rate, and Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama.
China will likely go to great lengths to foster a more
positive attitude among the dozens of European leaders
visiting this year's World Expo in Shanghai.
At a lower level, too, China has unleashed an impressive
charm offensive. State broadcaster CCTV will launch a
worldwide program to explain the Chinese position on
international affairs. In Brussels and Washington, one
gets the impression that the mission of China's diplomats
nowadays is to meet and charm everyone. Hardly a week
passes without the Chinese ambassador giving eloquent
speeches for different audiences. Indeed, in Brussels,
events are organised for members of the European
Parliament, the business community, and even high school
students. Chinese diplomats now maintain closer relations
with think tanks than their European counterparts do, and
are praised for their constructive contribution to the
public debate.
But charm will not make up for lack of progress at the
official level. It is unlikely that cajoling Western
elites will mitigate the deep-seated uncertainty in the US
and Europe about China's rise. And economic stagnation in
the West will inevitably exacerbate distrust vis-à-vis the
rising power as the relative gains from trade diminish and
defensive and even protectionist policies likely follow -
no matter how much China smiles at the world. China needs
a mature strategic dialogue, particularly with the EU.
This will not rescue the partnership, but at least it
could help define common interests, identify policy
options, and create the conditions to achieve results.
Interests, not comradeship, should guide policies. One can
have the most visible business summits possible, but if
Western companies do not gain greater access to the
Chinese market, or if they feel threatened by heavily
subsidised state-owned enterprises, relations will
continue to sour. We can stage round-table after
round-table to discuss the importance of our relations
with China, but if issues like Iran, Africa, or other
trouble spots are not managed better, the West will
inevitably consider China a security threat.
Cultivating high expectations without progress could even
be dangerous. In the short term, it would reduce the sense
of urgency among decision makers to get serious about
translating ambitions into deeds. In the long run, the
growing expectation gap would aggravate the inevitable
setbacks, and political leaders who championed closer
relations could even be replaced by hardliners.
"The crash will come if things go on like this," Otto von
Bismarck wrote in the nineteenth century. "We ought to do
all we can to weaken the bad feeling, which has been
called out through our growth to the position of a real
great power. In order to produce this confidence, it is
above all necessary that we are honorable, open, and
easily reconciled in case of frictions." But even
Germany's Iron Chancellor had to watch as distrust,
economic nationalism, and populism pulled the European
powers into a downward spiral of trade wars and diplomatic
rivalry.
History offers too many examples of once-promising
partnerships collapsing in a climate of uncertainty for
China and the West to take their relations for granted.
For China, it will be hard to build confidence if Europe
and the US doubt their own future. And China will remain
prickly as long as it fears protectionism or a new
containment strategy. Neither side can talk its way out of
this predicament. If Beijing is serious about building
strategic partnerships with the West, it should back up
its charm offensive with deeds and take the initiative in
fostering more effective cooperation.
Jonathan Holslag is research fellow at the Brussels
Institute of Contemporary China Studies and author of
China and India: Prospects for Peace.
International
US
to attack extremists on Pak soil if it doesn't do so
itself: Ex-CIA official
ANI, Washington
With the US authorities almost certain that the confessed
Time Square bomber Faisal Shahzad was trained by the
Tehreeke-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton giving Islamabad the most stringent
warning of them all till date, President Barack Obama is
likely to tell the Pakistani leadership that they have got
very little or no choice but to launch assault against
extremists in their stronghold North Waziristan.
A former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) official,
Arthur Keller said it is likely that US will ask Pakistan
to launch a military offensive in North Waziristan, where
Shahzad is believed to have received the terror training
or it will do so itself.
"If you"re not going to help, just get the hell out of the
way," is what Keller believes Washington would tell
Islamabad.
Keller, while quoting from a speech that Obama had
delivered in August 2007 on foreign policy, stressed that
Obama, the then presidential hopeful had clarified that US
would not hesitate to target militants across Pakistan.
"If we have actionable intelligence about high-value
terrorist targets and Pakistan won"t act, we will," the
then Senator Obama had said.
Keller pointed out while ground operations by US troops
inside Pakistan's territory were difficult, the CIA, which
has been operating the drone strikes, and the Special
Operations Command (SOC) would be allowed to expand their
operation in the troubled country. "CIA and Special
Operations Command could get license to operate more
freely.That"s a logical escalation," The Daily News quoted
Keller, as saying.
"It"s almost like a Sicilian vendetta killing cycle," he
added.
Clashes in NW
Pakistan kill 9 troops, 37 militants
AP, Peshawar
Officials say the Pakistani Taliban attacked an army
checkpoint in the country's northwest near the Afghan
border, leaving nine troops and 37 militants dead.
Government official Samiullah Khan said a group of more
than 200 insurgents attacked the soldiers Monday in the
Orakzai tribal region.
Two intelligence officials and an army officer also
confirmed the account. They spoke on condition of
anonymity because they were not authorized to release
information to the media.
The military official says the dead troops include two
officers.
The Pakistani army has been in the region fighting
militants who fled an earlier offensive in their
stronghold of South Waziristan.
Reuters adds: Ten soldiers and 30 Taliban militants were
killed in a clash on Monday after militants ambushed a
military search team in Pakistan's Orakzai region, a
government official said.
In recent weeks, Pakistan has mounted an anti-militant
drive in the northwest after al Qaeda-linked militants
were largely rooted out from their strongholds in the
tribal lands near the Afghan border and Swat over the past
year.
The latest fighting took place in the Taliban stronghold
of Daburi, about 16 km (10 miles) west of Orakzai's main
town Kalaya, the government official, Asghar Khan, told
Reuters.
"The government forces entered the area yesterday and
today they were carrying out searches when militants
attacked and killed 10 soldiers," he said.
Khan said 30 militants were killed in the clash that
lasted for several hours.
MQM collects resignations
of its ministers, advisers
Dawn Online,
Karachi
A controversy between the Pakistan People's Party and
Muttahida Qaumi Movement over restoration of the old
status of Hyderabad district intensified on Sunday when
the MQM coordination committee collected resignation
letters from its ministers and advisers in the federal and
Sindh governments.
The federal PPP-led government may lose its majority in
the 342-member National Assembly if 25 MNAs of the MQM
withdraw their support. The PPP has 124 members and its
majority depends on the support of the MQM, Awami National
Party, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam and independents.
There was no contact between the top leadership of the two
parties till the evening and the PPP did not appear to be
in a mood to retract its stance on reviving the pre-2005
status of Hyderabad.
Sindh's acting Governor Nisar Khuhro said that if the
current status of Hyderabad district was maintained the
five defunct districts of Karachi should also be revived.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had said at a convention
of PPP legislators and office-bearers of Hyderabad
division on Saturday that the old administrative structure
of Hyderabad would be restored. The statement drew harsh
criticism from MQM chief Altaf Hussain who threatened to
quit the coalition.
While Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah is reported to
have said that a core committee comprising senior members
of the PPP and the MQM is the appropriate forum to resolve
such contentious issues, the MQM does not appear to be
interested in the proposal. "To us this issue is
non-negotiable," said Dr Farooq Sattar.
The MQM chief has urged President Asif Ali Zardari to
intervene and the party is waiting a response.
Sources in the MQM told Dawn that its ministers and
advisers had submitted their resignation to the
coordination committee which would send them to the
authorities concerned "at an appropriate time".
US envoy warns Myanmar over
North Korea arms links
AP, Yangon
A top U.S. official visiting Myanmar issued a strong
warning Monday against its military regime buying arms
from North Korea in defiance of a U.N. embargo, and also
said that Washington believes that its election plans lack
legitimacy.
Kurt Campbell, assistant secretary of state for East Asia,
read a statement to the press as he prepared to leave
Myanmar after holding nearly two hours of closed-door
talks with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi,
whose party was disbanded last week as a result of its
refusal to register for the polls, slated for sometime
this year. He did not reveal details of their talks, but
praised her nonviolent struggle for democracy.
"She has demonstrated compassion and tolerance for her
captors in the face of repeated indignities," he said. "It
is simply tragic that Burma's generals have rebuffed her
countless appeals to work together to find a peaceable
solution for a more prosperous future." Burma is another
name for Myanmar. Campbell earlier held talks with several
Cabinet ministers.
The U.S. envoy issued what appeared to be Washington's
strongest warning to date concerning Myanmar's arms
purchases from North Korea, which some analysts suspect
includes nuclear technology.
A U.N. Security Council resolution bans all North Korean
arms exports, authorizes member states to inspect North
Korean sea, air and land cargo and requires them to seize
and destroy any goods transported in violation of the
sanctions.
Campbell said that Myanmar leadership had agree to abide
by the U.N. resolution, but that "recent developments"
called into question its commitment. He said he sought the
junta's agreement to "a transparent process to assure the
international community that Burma is abiding by its
international commitments."
"Without such a process, the United States maintains the
right to take independent action within the relevant
frameworks established by the international community,"
said Campbell.
He did not explain what the new developments were or what
action the U.S. might take, though it has in the past
threatened to stop and search ships carrying suspicious
cargo from Pyongyang.
Japan cabinet meets on US
base as support sags
Reuters, Tokyo
Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and a handful of
cabinet ministers tried to hammer out a policy on the
relocation of a U.S. airbase on Monday, as the row weighed
on voter support ahead of an election.
Hatoyama said he would stick to a self-imposed end-of-May
deadline for resolving the feud, which has been one of the
triggers for evaporating voter support in the run-up to an
upper house election expected in July.
The Democrats' chances of winning a majority in that
election are receding, raising the chances of policy
deadlock as the country struggles to maintain a fragile
economic recovery and control ballooning public debt.
Less than a fifth of Japanese plan to vote for the ruling
Democratic Party in the election, according to a Yomiuri
newspaper poll published on Monday. About a quarter of
respondents to the Yomiuri poll said they supported Prime
Minister Yukio Hatoyama and his cabinet, down on 33
percent in a previous poll last month and compared with 67
percent who said they did not.
2002 Gujarat riots: Togadia
appears before SIT
PTI, Gandhinagar
VHP International General Secretary Praveen Togadia today
appeared for questioning before the Special Investigation
Team (SIT), probing the 2002 riots.
Togadia reached the SIT office in block number 11 of Old
Secretariat campus around 1100 hours along with several
VHP activists who shouted 'Jai Shree Ram' slogans.
After the VHP leader went inside, nearly 100 activists
including some sadhus gathered in the lawn outside the
office and sang bhajans.
Before reaching the SIT office, Togadia visited two
temples -- Mahalakshmi temple in Ahmedabad and Panchdev
temple in Gandhinagar.
Togadia was called for questioning by SIT on April 19 in
connection with the complaint of Zakia Jaffery, wife of
slain ex-MP Ehsan Jaffery, who was among the 69 killed in
the Gulburg society riots on February 28, 2002.
He had however, failed to appear before it then. "I don't
know what the complaint is about because despite making
several requests, I was not given copy of the complaint,"
Togadia told reporters today at the VHP headquarters
before leaving for the questioning.
"Since the Supreme Court has set up the SIT and asked it
to probe the complaint, I am going there as I respect the
apex court," 53-year-old Togadia said.
"In this country it has become a crime to be a Hindu," he
said.
Aquino leading in early
presidential race results
AP, Manila
Early official results from the Philippine elections show
Sen. Benigno Aquino III, the son of democracy icons,
leading in the presidential race.
The poll body says Aquino is leading with 40.44 percent of
the votes from about 38 percent of the precincts, while
his closest rival, ousted President Joseph Estrada, has
25.76 percent.
Aquino's sudden political rise has bolstered hopes among
his supporters for a clean leadership after nine years of
a scandal-tainted administration that was rocked by coup
attempts and protests.
Aquino has campaigned on a strong anti-graft platform and
promised to start prosecuting corrupt officials within
weeks of his election.
The son of a democracy icon was favorite to win the
Philippine presidency as millions of citizens voted
Monday, undeterred by computer-counting machine glitches
and violence that claimed at least nine lives.
Sen. Benigno Aquino III - whose father was assassinated
while opposing a dictatorship and whose mother led the
"people power" revolt that restored freedoms - commanded a
large lead in the presidential race, according to the last
pre-election surveys.
About 50 million registered voters out of a population of
90 million will elect politicians for posts from the
presidency to municipal councils. In a country where
celebrities commonly seek office, the jewel-studded former
first lady Imelda Marcos is running for a House seat, as
is boxing star Manny Pacquiao in his second congressional
bid.
But even Aquino was unable to immediately cast his ballot,
because a vote-counting machine broke down in his
precinct. The Elections Commission extended voting for
another hour to make up for delays. Polls closed at 7 p.m.
and early results were expected within hours.
At
least 84 killed in attacks across Iraq
AP, Baghdad
A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a textile factory
Monday in a crowd that gathered after two car bombings at
the same spot in the worst of a series of attacks that
killed at least 84 people across Iraq, the deadliest day
this year.
The violence added to fears that political uncertainty
could further destabilize the country. More than two
months after the March 7 elections, there is still no new
government in sight and the negotiations to form one could
drag on for months more as U.S. troops prepare to
withdraw.
In the worst attack of the day, a suicide bomber with
explosives strapped to his belt blew himself up among a
crowd of people who were trying to help victims of two car
bombs that went off earlier outside a textile factory in
the Shiite city of Hillah south of Baghdad, said
provincial police spokesman Maj. Muthana Khalid.
At least 45 were killed and 140 wounded, said Khalid and
Zuhair al Khafaji, director of al-Hillah general hospital.
Police said the cars were parked outside the factory about
25 yards apart, and were believed to be detonated by
remote control. Khalid said the bombs exploded around 1:30
p.m. as workers were leaving the factory. Hillah, the
capital of Babil province, is 60 miles (95 kilometers)
south of Baghdad.
The attack was the deadliest in a series of shootings and
bombings across the country that began in the capital
Baghdad with early morning drive-by shootings and bombings
at security checkpoints that targeted police and army.
Other attacks targeted both Sunni and Shiite areas and by
mid-afternoon, at least 75 were killed across Iraq, and
hundreds wounded. Violence in the city and the rest of the
country has fallen dramatically since the height of the
insurgency in 2006 and 2007.
UK parties say
progress made on power-sharing
Reuters, London
Britain's Conservatives and Liberal Democrats said they
made progress on Monday at talks to reach a power-sharing
deal after an inconclusive election that has left markets
looking for a swift end to political deadlock.
Spokesmen for the two parties refused to comment on a Sky
News report that they have reached an "outline deal" that
will be put to their members of parliament on Monday.
David Cameron's centre-right Conservatives and the smaller
centre-left Lib Dems gave no more details of their latest
attempt to thrash out a deal that could lead to Britain's
first collaborative government since the 1970s.
The talks centre on the best way to rebuild the economy
after the worst recession since World War Two and cut a
record budget deficit, party figures said over the
weekend.
"We have made further progress," said William Hague, chief
negotiator for the Conservatives. "We are now going to
report back to David Cameron and have meetings with our
parliamentary colleagues."
Liberal Democrat negotiator Danny Alexander said "good
progress" had been made, but refused to say whether the
two sides were close to an agreement.
Gordon Brown, whose Labour Party has ruled Britain since
1997, remains prime minister while the negotiations
continue and still hopes he can woo the Lib Dems and hold
on to power.
The Conservatives won the most seats in the election, but
fell 20 seats short of a majority in the 650-member
parliament. They want the support of Nick Clegg's
third-placed Lib Dems, possibly in a formal coalition or a
looser power-sharing deal.
The two parties, which disagree on electoral reform,
immigration and Britain's ties with the European Union,
have limited time to reach an agreement.
While financial markets were focused on the EU and
International Monetary Fund's rescue package to stop the
Greek debt crisis from spreading, they will want Britain's
uncertain political situation to be clarified in the next
few days.
Israel primed for war on
Iran
Reuters, Herzliya,
Israel
Israel is primed for a war on Iran, a deputy to Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday, in a rare
break with his government's reticence as world powers try
to talk Tehran into curbing its nuclear plans.
By spearheading assaults on guerrillas in neighbouring
Lebanon and Palestinian territories, the Israeli air force
had gained the techniques necessary for any future strikes
on Iranian sites, Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon said.
"There is no doubt that the technological capabilities,
which improved in recent years, have improved range and
aerial refuelling capabilities, and have brought about a
massive improvement in the accuracy of ordnance and
intelligence," he told a conference of military officers
and experts.
"This capability can be used for a war on terror in Gaza,
for a war in the face of rockets from Lebanon, for war on
the conventional Syrian army, and also for war on a
peripheral state like Iran," said Yaalon, a former armed
forces chief.
Israel, which is assumed to have the Middle East's only
atomic arsenal, bombed Iraq's nuclear reactor in 1981 and
launched a similar sortie in Syria in 2007.
But its veiled threats against foe Iran have been
questioned by some independent analysts who see the
potential targets as too distant, dispersed, numerous and
well-defended for Israeli warplanes to take on alone.
Israeli plan for east
Jerusalem clouds peace talks
AP, Jerusalem
Israel said Monday it will press forward with construction
of new housing for Jews in east Jerusalem, drawing
Palestinian accusations that the plans could undermine
newly relaunched peace talks.
Cabinet Secretary Zvi Hauser's statement illustrated the
balancing act that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu faces as he conducts peace talks in the coming
months.
His hawkish government wants construction in east
Jerusalem, the section of the holy city claimed by the
Palestinians, to continue. But American mediators and the
Palestinians want the building halted.
"Building is expected to begin soon in Har Homa ... and
Neve Yaakov, where (construction) bids have been issued,"
Hauser told Army Radio, referring to two east Jerusalem
neighborhoods. "Building in Jerusalem is continuing
according to its regular pace."
U.S. Mideast envoy George Mitchell left the region Sunday
after completing the first round of indirect peace talks
between Israelis and Palestinians - who resumed
negotiations last week after at 17-month hiatus.
The U.S. praised both sides on Sunday for taking small
steps to create a positive atmosphere, including an
Israeli pledge not to build a major housing project for
two years. The planned construction of 1,600 new
apartments in the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood had caused a
serious rift with Washington.
Hauser said it would have taken a couple of years anyway
before the Ramat Shlomo project would begin, and in the
meantime, construction in other east Jerusalem
neighborhoods would proceed. He gave no timetable for the
building in Har Homa and Neve Yaakov and did not say how
many new apartments are planned there.
2 Israeli Arabs suspected
of spying for Hezbollah
AP, Jerusalem
Israel has arrested two Israeli Arabs suspected of spying
for Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, police and security
services said Monday, partially lifting a gag order on the
case. Websites flouted the gag order and made the arrest
of political activist Amir Makhoul into a rallying cry for
critics of Israel's treatment of its Arab minority.
Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the gag
order was imposed to avoid harming the investigation.
Israel's Shin Bet intelligence agency said in a statement
that the men were arrested for "severe security offenses
including contacting a Hezbollah agent." Additional
details of the case are still subject to the gag order,
the statement said. The two men have not been charged.
In recent years, several Israeli Arabs have been arrested
for spying for Hezbollah, a fierce enemy of Israel
suspected of involvement in bloody attacks against Jews
outside the region as well. In 2006, Hezbollah and Israel
fought a monthlong war, and Israel's president recently
accused the militants of obtaining Scud missiles from
Syria.
Ash clears over Europe;
airports operate normally
AP, Brussels
A band of volcanic ash was drifting in the middle of the
Atlantic Ocean Monday and adding hours to flights from
North America to Europe as planes diverted around it.
Flights across Europe were operating normally after the
dispersal of another plume of volcanic ash that disrupted
air traffic and forced some airport closures over the
weekend, aviation officials said.
Airlines pushed authorities for an official determination
on when airlines could fly though areas of light
contamination. Most of the clouds over Europe have
contained such light concentrations of ash.
Air traffic charts showed that airliners on both the
westward and eastward tracks across the Atlantic were
being diverted far to the north, over Greenland, to avoid
the danger zone around the Icelandic volcano whose
eruptions forced a five-day suspension of air traffic in
Europe last month.
The resulting travel chaos saw the cancellation of more
than 100,000 flights - stranding passengers around the
world and causing airlines direct losses of more than
euro1 billion ($1.3 billion). The Association of European
Airlines said the losses caused by this weekend's
disruptions, which affected less than 2 percent of
scheduled flights, were likely to be negligible.
Lebanon's archaic legal
system means wearing bikini a no-no
AFP, Lebanon
The thousands of women parading along Lebanon's sunny
beaches this summer in skimpy bikinis or strolling the
city's pavements in miniskirts or shorts will all
technically be breaking the law. More than 60 years after
the tiny Mediterranean country gained independence from
France, its penal code is still bogged down with archaic
laws, some of which date back to the Ottoman Empire.
"Some laws have not been amended for decades," Judge John
Azzi, an advocate for women's rights, told AFP.
"It is as though nothing has changed" since Ottoman and
French rule over Lebanon, when the country's laws were
passed, Azzi added. One 1941 law, for example, still
prohibits women from donning a two-piece and hitting the
beach. Their punishment? A fine of 250 Lebanese-Syrian
pounds-a currency that no longer exists. While such laws
may prompt laughter among some people, others say they
could also be viewed as appropriate among conservative
societies in the Middle East and elsewhere.
World governments fail to
halt biodiversity loss
Reuters, London
World governments have failed to meet a 2010 target to
halt biodiversity loss and action must be taken to
preserve the species and ecosystems upon which human life
depends, a United Nations report said on Monday.
In a move endorsed by the U.N. General Assembly, more than
190 countries committed in 2002 to achieve a significant
reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.
But the report said: "There are multiple indications of
continuing decline in biodiversity in all three of its
main components-genes, species and ecosystems."
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: "The consequences
of this collective failure, if it is not quickly
corrected, will be severe for us all." Natural habitats in
most parts of the world are shrinking and nearly a quarter
of plant species are estimated to be threatened with
extinction, said the Global Biodiversity Outlook-3 report.
The abundance of vertebrate species fell by nearly a third
between 1970 and 2006 and crop and livestock genetic
diversity is declining in farming.
Business/Economy
President urges Bulgaria to import more Bangladeshi
products
UNB, Dhaka
President Zillur Rahman has urged Bulgaria to import more
Bangladeshi products and also recruit skilled and
semi-skilled manpower from the country with a view to
further increasing bilateral cooperation between the two
countries.
The President made the call when newly appointed
Delhi-based Bulgarian Ambassador to Bangladesh Borislav
Kostov presented his credentials to him at Bangabhaban on
Monday.
During the meeting, Zillur Rahman said the Bulgarian
businessman could import world standard Bangladeshi
products like readymade garments, leather and jute goods,
ceramic and pharmaceuticals considering their very
competitive prices.
He also said the Bulgarian entrepreneurs might come
forward for individual or joint investments in the fields
of RMG, textile, energy, petroleum, leather ceramic, and
pharmaceuticals and agro-processing in Bangladesh. The
President mentioned that Bangladesh and Bulgaria have
enormous possibilities for expanding their ties in trade,
commerce and cultural sectors but the volume of trade
between the two countries does not reflect the true
potential.
Saying that Bulgaria was one of the countries who
recognized Bangladesh immediately after its independence,
Zillur Rahman said Bangladeshis are grateful to Bulgaria
in this regard.
Zillur Rahman also congratulated Bulgarian leadership for
their efforts in ascending to the European Union as a
full-fledged member sate. The new envoy appreciated the
achievement of Bangladesh for maintaining a 'high' 5-6%
percent of GDP growth rate over the years amid ongoing
global economic crisis. He also appreciated Bangladesh for
playing the leading role in raising its voice against the
adverse effects of climate change worldwide.
Kostov emphasised increasing high level political,
business and cultural visits between the two countries for
further increasing the bilateral relations between
Bangladesh and Bulgaria. The evoy sought President's
cooperation in discharging his new responsibilities and
assured the president that he would do this to his level
best to bring the trade and commerce relations between the
two countries to new heights.
Secretary to the President's office M Safiul Alam, Press
Secretary AKM Nesar Uddin Bhuiyan and Additional Secretary
to the Foreign Affairs Ministry Mostafa Kamal were present
during the meeting. Earlier, the Ambassador was given a
guard of honor by a contingent of the President's Guard
Regiment.
10pc
allocation of nat'l budget demanded for disabled people in
next fiscal
UNB, Dhaka
The National Alliance of Disabled Peoples' Organisation (NADPO)
on Monday demanded 10 percent allocation of the national
budget for the disabled in the next fiscal.
"Ten percent of the national budget should go to the
development of the disabled communities," said NADPO
president MA Sattar Dulal while addressing a press
conference on 'Disabled Community to the Development of
Bangladesh: National Budget 2010-2011' at the National
Press Club.
He also demanded of the government to ensure 5 percent of
the 10 percent budgetary allocation to the various
organizations of the disabled people.
The NADPO president said the budgetary allocation for some
1.50 crore disabled people in the country in the 2009-10
fiscal was not sufficient as it was only Tk 101.01
crore-Tk 93.60 crore for allowances and Tk 7.41 crore for
human resource development.
The bulk of the allocated amount had to be spent for
administrative activities and salaries of staffs, he
added.
Dulal, also the founder and executive director of the
Bangladesh Protibandhi Kalyan Somity (BPKS), hoped that
the budget for the 2010-11 fiscal will be placed and
passed in parliament in keeping with the UN Convention on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as well as the
election pledges of the ruling Awami League.
He also emphasized that the Finance Minister should sit
with the representatives of the NADPO in a pre-budget
meeting. NADPO senior vice president Shawkat Hossain
Bhuiyan, secretary general Jahangir Alam, joint secretary
Iftekhar Hossain Sohel, finance secretary Ayub Nabi Mollah
and executive member Mohammad Anwar were, among others,
present at the press conference. NADPO represents some 94
countrywide organizations for disabled people.
The NADPO also demanded ensuring facilities for the
disabled people in every project taken by the government.
NADPO vice president Shawkat Hossain mentioned the monthly
allowance of Tk 300 for the disabled as insufficient and
demanded of the government to ensure free accommodation
for the disabled along with Tk 5,000 as monthly allowance.
Arab world to remain key global energy source
for decades
AFP, Doha
Arab countries will remain the world's main energy
supplier for decades to come, with more than half of
proven global oil reserves, speakers at an Arab energy
conference in Doha said on Monday.
Arab countries hold 681 billion barrels of crude oil,
representing 58 percent of proven global reserves, oil
exploration and production expert at the Organisation of
Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries Torki Hemsh told
delegates, citing 2009 figures.
The Arab world also holds close to 300 billion barrels of
potential, "undiscovered" crude reserves, Hemsh said on
the second day of the ninth Arab Energy Conference.
Speaking earlier, Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi also
emphasised the Arab region's guaranteed role in the
industry.
"These massive reserves... mean that this region will
continue to occupy special significance in the global oil
industry and trade for many decades to come," he said.
Arab countries currently produce 21.5 million barrels per
day of oil, more than one third of which comes from Saudi
Arabia alone, with total Arab oil production down from 23
million bpd in 2006 due to the global financial crisis and
the drop in demand.
Arab countries also sit on nearly 30 percent of the
world's proven natural gas reserves, Hemsh said, with
stocks of 54.1 trillion cubic metres (1900 trillion cubic
feet) and the potential to add more than 40 trillion cubic
metres in the future.
Qatar Petroleum's Director of Oil and Gas Ventures Saad
al-Kaabi said Arab countries currently supply 13 percent
of the world's gas production and account for eight
percent of global gas consumption.
OPEC secretary general Abdullah el-Badri said the Arab
world has the potential to help meet rising global oil and
gas demand.
"The Arab world will continue to play a leading role in
supplying the world with energy needs far into the
future," Badri told the conference.
But the OPEC official warned that uncertainty and price
volatility in the oil market have negatively impacted on
the investment needed in the energy sector to boost
production.
Professional skills must for attaining successes
in baking sector
BSS, Rajshahi
Gaining professional skills is indispensable to attain
professional success in the banking sector along with
socio- economic development of the nation.
Management of Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB) stated
this while addressing the inaugural session of a three-day
training course titled "resistance of fraudulence,
cheating and corruption in banking activities" at the
bank's training institute here Sunday.
RAKUB Managing Director (additional charge) Dilwar Hossain
Bhuiyan addressed the session as the chief guest with
principal of the institute Mozammel Haque in the chair. In
his address of welcome, Faculty Member Moazzem Hossain
illustrated the aims and objectives of the course and its
module.
He said the main objective of the course was to enhance
professional competence of the fresh officers through
disseminating ideas about the bank's operation,
administration, accounts, ethics, norms, discipline and
other related matters.
Faculty Members Asadur Rahman and Ataur Rahman also spoke
on the occasion.
Dilwar Hossain Bhuiyan highlighted the importance of the
bank in agricultural development of the northwestern
Bangladesh and asked the participants to acquire proper
knowledge for flourishing their banking idea.
As the largest development partner in the agricultural
sector of the northwestern Bangladesh, he said the RAKUB
has a vital role to earn economic emancipation and to free
the nation from poverty and hunger through boosting
credit-flow to the potential agricultural fields.
"You have to contribute to the national economy especially
agriculture through updating your knowledge," he said
adding that image of the bank should be brightened by
utilizing the acquired knowledge.
Besides, he underscored the need for ensuring transparency
and accountability at all levels of the banking activities
especially loan disbursement and recovery in the greater
interest of enhancing agricultural production.
Bank of England freezes rates amid political
cloud
AFP, London
The Bank of England froze British interest rates on
Monday, opting for a "wait and see" policy after last
week's general election left Britain with no outright
winner.
The BoE's monetary policy committee (MPC) has voted to
keep its key lending rate at a record-low 0.50 percent for
the fourteenth month in a row, the central bank said in a
statement.
The interest rate decision, framed also against the
backdrop of eurozone financial troubles, was delayed by
the's general election, which failed to produce a decisive
result.
"The BoE's monetary policy committee today voted to
maintain the official bank rate paid on commercial bank
reserves at 0.50 percent," the bank said, as opposition
politicians continued talks aimed at forming a new
government.
Financial markets remain on edge over the election result
amid fears that a new administration may face problems in
slashing the nation's record deficit.
"The MPC unsurprisingly judged that now is not the time to
be raising interest rates as the downside risks to still
fragile UK economic recovery are magnified by current
major political uncertainty," said IHS Global Insight
economist Howard Archer.
He added that those risks were also magnified by "the
recent heightened market turmoil resulting from the Greek
crisis and contagion effects on other eurozone countries."
BoE policymakers also sought to balance unexpectedly high
inflation with the need to support a fragile British
economy which grew by just 0.2 percent in the first
quarter of the year.
"The current recovery does not appear to have enough legs
to sustain itself without ultra-low rates for the time
being," said Investec economist Philip Shaw.
"Uncertainties over the path of UK fiscal policy, plus the
recent round of market pressures related to the Greek
crisis, also reinforce a stance of wait-and-see."
The bank added that it will not alter its so-called
quantitative easing policy, under which it had pumped 200
billion pounds (230 billion euros, 300 billion dollars) of
new money into the economy.
The main opposition Conservatives had failed to clinch a
clear victory against the ruling Labour Party in the
election last Thursday, when the BoE had originally
scheduled its latest decision.
Opposition politicians voiced hope Monday they could soon
strike a deal on forming a new government to break a
four-day deadlock.
Merkel rules out tax cuts ‘in foreseeable
future’
AFP, Berlin
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday ruled out tax cuts in
Europe's
biggest economy, a key election pledge, "in the
foreseeable future" following a "bitter defeat" in a key
state poll.
"[In] my view no tax cuts will be possible in the
foreseeable future," Merkel told reporters, adding that
this meant "at least two years-the budgets for 2011 and
2012." Her current term runs until 2013.
In general elections in September, Merkel ditched the
centre-left coalition partners in favour of a new alliance
with the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), promising
voters billions of euros (dollars) in tax cuts.
"Looking further ahead in politics is always very
difficult because many things happen differently than one
can predict with forecasts today," Merkel said.
Merkel said that instead of cutting taxes, her government
would focus on simplifying the taxation system.
National
Pre-budget discussion
Priority to education, healthcare and agriculture sectors
suggested
BSS, Rajshahi
Speakers at a pre- budget discussion here Sunday
underscored the need for formulating a pro-people national
budget along with giving priority to education, healthcare
and agriculture sectors for overall development of the
nation.
In this regard, they also said the promising small and
medium enterprise sector should be brought under an
adequate budgetary allocation for large-scale promotion of
the sector in the region's remote areas.
The prospective initiative will help building a positive
socio-economic infrastructure which will contribute a lot
to the poverty alleviation after attaining 3-4 percent
economic growth from the income generating activities by
the poor and marginal people as pledged by the present
government.
Speakers made these observations in the discussion styled
"We want pro-people budget and priority towards the
education, healthcare and agriculture" organized by the
local unit of the Campaign for Good Governance (CGG) at
GDRC Conference hall.
CGG Secretary Akbarul Hassan Millat presented a concept
paper on the issue. Local lawmaker Fazley Hossain Badsha,
who addressed the discussion as the chief guest, said
peoples participation is a must for formulating a
pro-people budget as the centrally prepared budget lacks
people's participation. He underscored the need for
formulating district- wise budget.
He viewed that the unusual market behavior in the free-
market economy extremely affects the poor and marginal
community saying that state control on the market is very
essential to mitigate the problem. Stressing the need for
making the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh effective
properly, he said the market should be brought under the
state control. Besides, lawmaker Badsha said the present
government has taken initiative to implement the proposed
North Rajshahi Irrigation Project for reducing the
pressure on groundwater for irrigation purposes.
He called for taking initiative for capital dredging in
the Padma river to bring back its navigability.
Chaired by local unit CGG President Prof Fazlul Haque, the
discussion was addressed by Associate Professor Dr Iliash
Hossain of Economics Department of Rajshahi University,
former Chairman of Rajshahi Education Board Prof Nurul
Alam, President of Rajshahi Chamber of Commerce and
Industry Abu Bakker Ali, Convener of Conscious Citizens
Committee Prof Abdus Salam, social worker Mozammel Haque
and Editor of Daily Sonaly Sangbad Liakat Ali as special
guests.
The speakers said the existing effort to alleviate poverty
could not be succeeded until the region-based investment
is ensured.
They stressed the need for bringing transparency and
accountability in implementing all development and poverty
alleviation activities to make those free from all sorts
of corruption and irregularities. Besides, they mentioned
that the national poverty reduction program could be made
successful through expediting the regional poverty
reduction activities.
They called for declaring the Rajshahi as special economic
zone for the best uses of the existing agricultural
potentialities and underscored the need for enhancing
budgetary allocation for its balanced development.
Call to stop burglaries in jewellery shops
BSS, Chittagong
A total of 2000 jewellery traders in the port city
demanded to the government to take proper steps for
stopping burglaries in different shops and shopping malls
in the port city.
They also demanded adequate security measures as over 650
tolas of gold ornaments was stolen from their shops in 17
robbery incidents during the last two months.
The jewellery shop owners along with their employees under
the banner of Bangladesh Jewellery Samity Chittagong (BJSC)
formed a human chain in front of Chittagong Press Club
premise Monday morning.
Later, a rally carrying placards, banners, festoons
brought out a procession from the press club and ended at
Andarkillah by parading main streets of the city.
Meanwhile, the BJSC submitted a memorandum to the Prime
Minister through the Deputy Commissioner Chittagong and
another memorandum to the commissioner of Chittagong
Metropolitan Police. Addressing a gathering Nurul Absar
Chowdhury, President of BJSC demanded of the police
administration to arrest the burglars and provide
sufficient security to their shopping malls.
Govt contemplates tougher
anti-poaching law
BSS, Dhaka
Tropical Bangladesh plans to enact tougher anti-poaching
laws to protect its endangered wildlife including the
Royal Bengal Tiger with officials saying they drafted a
legislation suggesting the highest life imprisonment for
repeated offenders.
"We have drafted the wildlife conservation afresh
suggesting the highest life imprisonment for those who
repeatedly poach," wildlife conservator of Bangladesh's
forest department Tapan Kumar Dey told BSS.
The country's existing Wildlife Conservation Act of 1974
prescribed maximum two years of imprisonment for a poacher
or smuggler alongside a penalty amounting to only Taka
2,000.
The forest official said they drafted the new law in line
with directive from the cabinet as a previous amendment
proposal was sent back with instructions for formulating
the act afresh Dey, however, said the draft law would
apply for endangered wild animals listed under Schedule 1
of the wildlife inventory of the government that included
elephants, deer Sambar, burking and hog deer, reptiles
like python, king cobra and sweet and salt water
crocodiles, several bird species like king vulture, the
Royal Bengal Tiger and dolphins.
"We are trying to toughen the anti-poaching law alongside
launching a motivational campaign especially at Sundarbans
(mangrove forest) ad (southeastern) Chittagong Hill Tracts
highlighting the importance of wildlife conservation,"
Chief forest conservator Abdul Motaleb said.
Call to make BMDA more proactive
to boost agricultural outputs in NW-region
BSS, Rajshahi
Expediting the proactive activities being done by the
Barind Multipurpose Development Authorities (BMDA) has
become indispensable to boost the agricultural production
for sustainable socio-economic development of the
country's northwest region. Besides, the region needs more
other need-based programs to face the adverse impact of
the climate change caused by the global warming.
This was discussed in the 66th Board of Directors Meeting
of BMDA at its conference hall here Sunday.
State Minister for Youth and Sports Ahad Ali Sarker
addressed the meeting as the chief guest with BMDA's
Chairman Nurul Islam Thandu in the chair.
The minister said the present government is committed to
take forward the BMDA activities by bringing its entire
development projects under accountable and transparency.
He said the government has already approved three projects
like fine rice production and marketing, deep tubewell
installation in all upazilas of Pabna, Sirajgonj, Bogra,
Gaibandha, Rangpur, Kurigram, Lalmonirhat and Nilphamari
districts and expansion and development of the irrigated
areas with an estimated cost of Taka 302.93 crore for
enhancing crop production in the region. Sixteen
lawmakers- Omar Faruque Chowdhury, Fazley Hossain Badsha
and Engineer Enamul Haque of Rajshahi, Sadhan Chandra
Mazumder and Ishrafil Alam of Naogaon, Ziaur Rahman of
Chapainawabgonj, Abu Talha of Natore, Mokbul Hossain,
Shamsur Rahman Sharif and Golam Faruque Khandaker Prince
of Pabna and Women MPs- Prof Zinatun Nessa Talukder,
Shawkat Ara, Shaheen Monwara Haque and Shefali Haque were,
among others, present at the meeting as member of the
board.
Learning is must for human
welfare-DU VC
BSS, Dhaka
Vice-Chancellor of Dhaka University (DU) Professor Dr A A
M S Arefin Siddiquie Monday called upon the students to
gain knowledge for human welfare.
He made the call while addressing as the chief guest the
orientation programme of students of the Department of
Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology.
It was also addressed, among others, by Dean of the
Faculty of Biological Sciences Dr Abul Basar and Professor
Dr Rafiqur Rahman. Chairman of the Department Dr Nazmul
Ahsan presided over the function.
The VC called upon the students of DU to play a pioneering
role in all important sectors including development of
human characteristics. No education could be effective for
the nation and the country as well if human
characteristics are absent, he said.
Describing the students of DU as highly meritorious, the
VC said they must dedicate themselves to the service to
the nation by fulfilling their hopes and aspirations and
resolving crisis.
BTMA for govt. subsidy to
raise apparel sector’s growth
BSS, Dhaka
Leaders of the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA)
Monday urged the government to announce subsidy for the
yarn users, apparel makers and exporters as a short term
measure to cope with the ongoing yarn price hike in the
country.
Addressing a press conference here, BTMA president Abdul
Hai Sarkar said meagre supply of gas to the spinning mills
and hike in the raw cotton's price in the international
market are mainly responsible for the soaring prices of
yarn.
BTMA Vice-President Tazul Islam Dhali, Directors Tapan
Chowdhury, Mosharraf Hossain, Mozammel Haque, Mahabub
Hossain, Abul Bashar and Azahar Khan, among others, were
also present at the press conference.
Brushing aside the knitwear exporters' claims that the
local spinners are now making windfall profits in the name
of price hike in the world market, Hai said the government
should provide a stimulus package to the apparel exporters
to help further growth of the sector.
"A vested quarter has been hatching conspiracy to destroy
the knitwear sector by spreading confusing remarks," Hai
said on a query.
The BTMA president said that his organization would ask
its members to make less profit to uphold the interests of
weavers as well as exporters amid the soaring price of
yarn. But the government should come forward with
incentives in this regard," he said.
Hai said the yarn price increased almost by 60 percent,
never seen during the last 15 years in the country. Hence,
he added, the weavers are at risk as the yarn price is not
within their purchasing capacity.
Abdul Hai said the yarn price has now started plummeting
but predicted that the price hike might continue up to
October this year.
"It will not be wise to accuse the spinners for the price
hike as the production cost has increased by nearly double
in recent months due to inadequate supply of gas to
factories, "said the BTMA president.
Roundtable on ‘Role of NATO in
the New Security Order’ on May 12
BSS, Dhaka
A roundtable on "Role of NATO in the New Security Order"
will be held at 10am on May 12 at Dhaka Sheraton Hotel in
the city.
Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies (BIPSS)
is organizing the roundtable, a release of BIPSS said
Monday.
H E Anders Christian Sjaastad, former Defence Minister of
Norway, will present the keynote paper at the roundtable
The focus area of the keynote paper is defence and
security policy of Europe and Asia.
NATO is an intergovernmental military organization and
deals with military threats of its member countries.
This roundtable will discuss on the present and possible
role of NATO in this new security order and establish the
reliability on transatlantic consensus.
President of BIPSS Major General (retd) ANM Muniruzzaman
and other experts, military personnel and former
government officials from the region will attend at the
roundtable.
SL-8H rice brings new hopes
for farmers in Jessore
BSS, Jessore
SL-8H, a new high yielding variety (HYV) of rice imported
by the Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC),
has brought new hopes for farmers as they have doubled
their rice output after cultivation.
As many as 69 farmers obtained 35 maunds of rice from each
bigha land at Monirampur in the district that exceeded all
previous records in rice production, BADC sources said.
They said the output would be much higher if the weather
remains favourable.
The BADC imported seeds of the rice variety from the
Philippines and later distributed those among the 69
farmers as an experiment and the farmers cultivated the
seeds on 50 acres of land in the district. Farmer Ferdows
Ahmed said they would benefit enormously if they are able
to cultivate the variety at large scale.
The BADC has increased its target of agriculture
production this time due to more cultivation of the
variety, said Nuruzzaman, a member of the BADC.
46 including alleged criminals
held in Rangpur
BSS, Rangpur
Police arrested a total of 46 persons, including suspected
criminals, from various places of the district during the
past 24 hours till Monday afternoon, police sources said.
Police said the arrested persons include absconding
warrantees and accused persons in different cases, drug
traders, smugglers and peddlers, gamblers, thieves,
suspects and other anti-social elements.
Police also recovered smuggled goods, ganja, phensidyl,
locally produced wine and other illegal goods during the
drives. Of them, Kotwali police netted 14 persons during
the period.
The arrested persons were sent to jail hajat when police
produced them before different Rangpur courts Monday, the
sources said.
Sports
Clarke excited by recovery
AFP, Bridgetown
Michael Clarke was excited about the way Australia recovered
from a shaky position to trample Sri Lanka by 81 runs in the
World Twenty20 on Sunday.
The Aussies followed up a rescue act from Cameron White with a
polished performance in the field.
White struck half-dozen fours and half-dozen sixes in 85 from
49 balls, as Australia, electing to bat, wobbled to 67 for
five before they recovered to reach 168 for five from their of
20 overs.
Chasing 169 for victory, Sri Lanka were dismissed for 87 in
16.2 overs in the Super Eight match.
"With the strength of our squad, we believe whatever position
we get into we can win," said the Australian captain.
"It didn't matter how many runs we got, we were confident in
those conditions that if we bowled well, and held our catches
that we would definitely win the game.
"Looking forward, it's important that we enjoy this victory. I
think it's a very exciting win for us, and the last two games
are something of which we should be very proud.
"But we go to St. Lucia [for the final Super Eight match] in
completely different conditions, so need to make sure we are
willing to adapt."
It is clear that Australia's batsmen and their bowlers in
particular have enjoyed the harder, bouncier pitches at
Kensington Oval, but Clarke played this down.
"Our bowlers deserve a lot of credit, but I don't think we've
bounced many people out," he said.
"Our execution has been spot on. It's not about the bouncer,
it's about the ball after the bouncer, which has undone many
batsmen."
Clarke acknowledged that Australia had one goal in mind from
the start of the tournament.
"We want to win this tournament, since we haven't performed as
well as we'd like in the first two World Twenty20s," he said.
"We are here to be successful, so we've all been working
really hard together. So far, so good. We can take a lot of
confidence from this match, but there is a long way to go, and
in conditions that probably won't suit our fast bowlers quite
as well.
Australia meet West Indies in their final Super Eight match on
Tuesday at the Beausejour Cricket Ground.
Robi
Asiad hockey qualifiers
Bangladesh downed by Chinese Taipei
TBT report
Bangladesh suffered a morale-shattering 7-5 defeat against
Chinese Taipei in the Robi Asian Games hockey qualifiers at
Moulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium in Dhaka on Monday.
Bangladesh took a 2-0 lead within seven minutes of play after
Kamruzzaman and Krishna Kumar had scored on five and seven
minutes respectively.
But the hosts then conceded two goals to allow Chinese Taipei
to comeback into the game before Mamunur Rahman Chayan again
put them 3-2 ahead, converting a penalty corner on 21 minutes.
Tsai Ming scored the third goal for the winners two minutes
later, while skipper Chen Yi scored just on the stroke of the
breather to bring a 4-3 lead for his side at the break.
Bangladesh was totally subdued against the spirited display of
Chinese Taipei and failed to change the run of play after the
change of ends. Chayan scored two penalty corner goals more in
the second half showing but failed to change the fate of the
game as Bangladesh left the ground with an unexpected defeat.
Bangladesh will face Hong Kong tomorrow in its third match of
the seven-team event. Earlier, Oman had to sweat hard to
prevail over the fighting Sri Lanka 4-3 in the first match of
the day.
Salah Nasser struck a first minute opener to give Oman an
early lead. Sri Lanka came back into the match when Isanka
Yayasundara sounded the board with a deft shot on 18 minutes.
Oman went ahead again with Hashim scoring the second but the
lead did not last long as Panditharatne netted the equalizer
for Sri Lanka on the stroke of the first half to put the match
on level terms (2-2) at the break.
Maulafer Mohamed scored for Sri Lanka on 41 minutes before
Oman scored three quick goals inside a matter of minutes.
Omani striker Mohamed scored on 50 and 55 minutes, while Basim
hit the net on 52 minutes (5-3).
Conceding a sizeable lead, Sri Lanka only managed to reduce
the deficit to 5-4 with Maulafer Mohamed scoring the fourth
goal for the islanders just two minutes before the hooter.
No match will be held today.
Hidayat
struggles as Nigeria gets the boot
AFP, Kuala Lumpur
Former Olympic and world champion Taufik Hidayat looked a
shadow of his former self in labouring to victory in the
Thomas Cup on Monday, as Nigeria were effectively thrown
out of the tournament.
Hidayat, Indonesia's top shuttler, took more than an hour
to see off India's Kashyap Parupalli in the world team
championships, finally getting off court with a narrow
three-set victory against the world number 13.
He won the rubber 14-21, 21-19, 21-18 and told AFP
afterwards a difficult cross-court wind sweeping the
indoor Putra Stadium had hampered his game.
"It was a little bit difficult because of the
wind-difficult to control because of lost feeling," said
the world number five. "And then in the second set I could
control it." Parapulli, who lost narrowly to Hidayat three
years ago in their last encounter in Hong Kong, said he
was feeling confident despite the defeat.
"I'm feeling confident about myself that I could play that
well against a top 10 guy. This year I was aiming to win
against at least one top 10 player. It was very close this
time," he said.
Indonesia were back on track when Olympic champions Markis
Kido and Hendra Setiawan cruised past Sanave Thomas and
Akshay Dewalkar 21-11, 21-13, as the second seeds went
through with room to spare and a 4-1 scoreline.
South Korea opened their campaign by delivering Peru their
second 5-0 thrashing of the tournament, with world number
39 Shon Wan-Ho easing past Andres Corpancho 21-9, 21-15 to
set the tone.
Gayle force leaves India on brink
AFP, Bridgetown
West Indies captain Chris Gayle fell short of an
unprecedented second Twenty20 international hundred but
still inspired his side to a 14-run win over India here on
Saturday.
Defeat left India, champion in 2007, contemplating
elimination from the World Twenty20.
Gayle's innings of 98 powered the hosts to a total of 169
for six before a good all-round display by the West Indies
in the field at the Kensington Oval saw India held to a
total of 155 for nine from 20 overs.n
If Sri Lanka beats Australia in Saturday's second Super
Eights match at Kensington, India will be out even before
their final second-round game.
But if Australia wins, India will still have a shot at
reaching the semi-finals.
However, India will have to beat Sri Lanka in St Lucia on
Tuesday and then hope both for an Australia win over the
West Indies and that their own run-rate is better than
that of Gayle's side.
West Indies' victory revived its bid for a last-four spot
after a 57-run thrashing by Sri Lanka at Kensington on
Friday.
"It was a good win, just what we needed," said Gayle,
whose typically enterprising innings lasted 66 balls, with
seven sixes and five fours.
"I was under pressure, not just cricket-wise, but I was
also given so much support. So it was important to play
well myself," the man-of-the-match added.
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni blamed his batsmen for
India's plight.
"The batting hasn't been up to expectations. The bowlers
have done decently, give or take a few overs here and
there.
Benfica wraps
up 32nd league title
AFP, Lisbon
Portuguese powerhouse Benfica secured its 32nd league
title after beating Rio Ave 2-1 at home on the final day
of the season on Sunday.
The Lisbon club finished five points clear of second-place
Sporting Braga, who was held 1-1 by Nacional, to clinch
its first Portuguese Liga title since 2005.
Braga's position in the final standings is the highest in
their history.
It also means that third-place FC Porto, champions for the
last four seasons, will miss out on next season's
Champions League for the first time since they won the
UEFA Cup in 2003.
Benfica had already won the Portuguese League Cup by
beating Porto 3-0 in the final in March but they were
eliminated from the Portuguese Cup in the last 32 by
Vitoria Guimaraes.
They were knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Europa
League by Liverpool.
The club of former Portugal greats including Eusebio and
Rui Costa, Benfica are the country's most successful and
well-supported side with around 200,000 members worldwide.
The final whistle in Sunday's game prompted a cacophony of
klaxons to ring out across the capital, with euphoric
supporters assembling at Marques de Pombal square in the
city centre.
Under the guidance of coach Jorge Jesus, who joined the
club last summer, Benfica were beaten just twice in the
league, at Braga and Porto.
They also boasted the league's best attack, with 78 goals
scored, as well as the best defence alongside Braga,
having conceded just 20 goals.
Their Paraguayan forward Oscar Cardozo scored both goals
against Rio Ave on Sunday at a sold-out, 65,000-capacity
Estadio da Luz.
He finished the season with 26 league goals, one more than
Porto's Colombian striker Radamel Falcao.
At the other end of the table, bottom club Leixoes were
relegated after losing to Benfica's fourth-place city
rivals Sporting and will be joined in the second division
by Belenenses. Beira-Mar and Portimonense were promoted
from the second tier.
Chelsea savours
title triumph
AFP, London
John Terry savoured the end of Chelsea's three years of
title hurt as the Blues reclaimed the Premier League crown
from Manchester United with an 8-0 demolition of Wigan on
Sunday.
Terry lifted the Premier League trophy after his side's
final day romp at Stamford Bridge ensured it finished the
season one point ahead of United and ended its rivals'
three-year reign as champion.
It was a cathartic moment for Terry personally after a
turbulent year marred by allegations of an affair with the
former partner of England teammate Wayne Bridge, which
prompted Fabio Capello to strip the Chelsea defender of
the international captaincy.
But Blues skipper Terry insisted he took more pleasure
from helping Chelsea return to the summit of English
football.
Asked about his difficult year, Terry told Sky Sports: "It
amazes me that people still talk about it. This is what
it's all about, this is what I've worked so hard for all.
"It's about Chelsea Football Club and our day. It's been a
hard three years, not winning the Premier League, but
we've done it today and we deserved it.
Chelsea's title glory was also a validation of boss Carlo
Ancelotti as he banished memories of Jose Mourinho, who
was the last man to lead the west London club to the
title.
The Italian, in his first season at the club, succeeded
where his Chelsea predecessors Avram Grant, Luiz Felipe
Scolari and Guus Hiddink failed as he ended United's
Premier League dominance. In the process, Chelsea set a
Premier League record of 103 goals as Ancelotti encouraged
his players to express themselves more.
Ancelotti said: "It's fantastic, we did our best and I did
my best for this club. There's a fantastic atmosphere at
this club, with these supporters, and I think we deserved
to win the championship after this season.
Didier Drogba scored a hat-trick to finish as the Premier
League's top scorer with 29 goals, but not before a
petulant show of dissent when Frank Lampard stepped up to
score a first-half penalty instead of the Ivory Coast
forward.
Asked about Drogba's reaction to being denied the chance
to take the penalty, Lampard said: "It was nothing. That's
what makes Didier what he is. He's hungry. "It's 1-0, I've
been taking the penalties all season and I wanted to score
to make it 2-0. Once we went clear then I was more than
happy for Didier to go and try to win the Golden Boot.
"We're a team and we want him to do well. He did it and he
deserved to be top scorer." Drogba was apologetic and
said: "I understood. But at the same time I was
disappointed because at 1-0 I wanted to score.
"I had to get over this frustration and in the second half
come back. We did so well I knew I would have some chances
to score.
"I was not happy at first but after, I knew I was making a
big mistake and Frank was right."
Abahani upbeat
about AFC President's Cup football
UNB, Dhaka
The AFC President's Cup kicks off tomorrow at the
country's premier venue Bangabandhu National Stadium with
Dhaka Abahani upbeat about showing its supremacy in the
prestigious meet, to be held on May 12-16.
On the opening day, Bangladesh League champion Abahani
Limited will take on league champion of Nepal in a group A
match after the another group A opening encounter between
Dordoi Bishek of Kyrgyzstan vs Yoedy of Chinese Taipei at
4 pm.
Abahani Limited has been placed in Group A of the AFC
President Cup with Dordoi Bishek of Krgyzstan, Yoedy of
Chinese Taipei and the league champions of Nepal.
Ahead of the prestigious meet, the host club already has
taken all preparations to make the tournament a success
and the host officials expressed their high optimism about
doing well in the tourney.
Like the previous occasion, the tournament will be held in
two stages. The group stage will be held on league basis
while the semifinal and final will be decided on knock out
basis.
The champion team of the tournament will receive U$ 50.000
while the runner-up will get U$ 25.000. Besides, highest
scorer and fair play team will also be awarded.
AFC will provide U$ 15,000 to all the participating teams
of the tournament except the host team. The hosts will
receive U$ 60,000.00 to meet the expenses of the
tournament.
Ticket rates for VIP (Tk 50) and Western gallery (Tk 25)
have been fixed while the school students will enjoy the
matches in the east gallery wearing school uniform or
showing ID card.
Abahani director in charge Lt col (retd) Kazi Shahed Ahmed
disclosed the details of the tournament at a press
conference at the Abahani Club premise today (Monday).
He said in the last meet, Abahani Limited beat Sri Lanka
Army 2-1 and held a goalless draw with Turkmenistan
Asgabad in the group B encounter to finish the tourney
with four points.
Short bowling
India's weakness: Gayle
AFP, Bridgetown
Chris Gayle believes that India's batsmen must prepare
better for short-pitched bowling in the future, or else
face the possibility of opponents exploiting this
vulnerability.
The West Indies captain admitted that his side purposely
use the short-ball to undermine the Indian batting, and
set up a 14-run victory in its Super Eight match in the
World Twenty20 on Sunday on a hard, true Kensington Oval
pitch.
"They know that every team will bowl short at them, so
they just need to work on their mental game and back
themselves," said Gayle, whose 98 from 66 balls put his
side on course for victory. "They are capable of handling
it, but maybe it's just a mental thing, so if they can
overcome that I'm sure they'll be even more dangerous."
West Indies then successfully defended a victory target of
170, when they restricted India to 155 for nine from their
20 overs with lively bowling and purposeful fielding
"They are always going to be vulnerable against the short
ball," said Gayle.
"Every team has done it against them, and it's something
at which they have to look, and for which they have to
prepare better."
He added: "They are a very good all-round team, but they
do not have my height. They are quite short, and might
have a bit of trouble on bouncier pitches.
"They are capable batters and have won games for their
team on many occasions. They might struggle in conditions
like these, but back home [on slower, lower pitches] they
are very dangerous."
India's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni bemoaned his side not
handling the short-pitched bowling better.
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