Bangladesh News

Come monsoon, come city road-digging

Sunday, June 17th, 2007Like in every monsoon, road cutting in different areas of the capital has been stepped up by utility service providers and mobile phone companies apparently competing with each other, causing immense sufferings to people.Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) allowed service providers and mobile phone operators to cut 74,000 square metres of road in the current fiscal year.Bangla Link is now cutting 2,694 square metre footpath and 151 square metre road from Mohakhali Kaderia Tower to Banani rail crossing and 8,680 square metre road from Mirpur- 1 to Bhasantek, City Cell is cutting 3,838 square metre road from PacificTower to Kuril ... (read more)

Living on dangerous slope

Sunday, June 17th, 2007Over 50 thousand people living in different foothill slums in the port city are under serious risks of falling an easy victim to landslides, especially during the rains. The latest study carried out by Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) reveals that some one lakh out of 14 lakh disadvantaged people, mostly factory workers, day labourers, or self-employed in different informal sectors, are living in some 1,814 slums in the port city.Of them, over 50 thousand live in the slums situated at the risky and treacherous slopes or bottom of hills where they can rent rooms at cheaper rates but safety of ... (read more)

Hasina wants reforms deeper than her party leaders do

Sunday, June 17th, 2007As demands for reforms grow louder within Awami League (AL), its President Sheikh Hasina wants to delve deeper into the issue, going beyond what some of her senior party leaders have recently come up with. In an exclusive interview with The Daily Star Thursday night (Star will also interview BNP chairperson), she said that the 21-point reform proposal that her colleagues drew up outside her involvement needs further amendment on many points.She believes not only the party president's post but no other party position should as well be held by the same person for more than two terms. Not ... (read more)

Cheated, they toil in Malaysia

Sunday, June 17th, 2007Thousands of Bangladeshi workers are living inhuman life in Malaysia due to unemployment and underpayment because of cheating by the recruiting agencies in Bangladesh and the outsourcing companies in Malaysia.Allegations are also there that the employers often deduct salaries of the workers on various grounds that were never mentioned in the job contracts.The employers also force the workers to work for longer hours and do not provide enough food, accommodation and other facilities, which they are supposed to provide.The Daily Star recently obtained documents of at least one company, which is exploiting the workers in various ways.The Malaysian ... (read more)

Laws, role of locals must to save forest

Sunday, June 17th, 2007Participation of local community and amendment to laws of colonial times are essential for efficient management and conservation of forests, said conversation and legal experts and social activists of South Asian region in the capital yesterday. It is time the governments and policymakers take into account the rights of the indigenous people and forest dwellers for sustainable extraction of forest recourses and participatory management of forests.Conservationists, legal experts and social activists of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal made the recommendations at a two-day South Asian regional workshop on Protecting Forests and Forest Dwellers: Role of Law. The workshop ... (read more)

AL leaders plan to hire lawyers from abroad

Sunday, June 17th, 2007Senior Awami League (AL) leaders are planning to bring in lawyers from abroad to provide legal aid to party chief Sheikh Hasina during the trials of the two extortion cases filed against her as the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) has engaged a large number of senior lawyers in other graft cases preventing them from defending any accused.Lawyers who are engaged with graft cases of the ACC cannot move for Hasina in court as they are under the condition of not providing any legal assistance to any accused in court during the trial, a senior lawyer who last week was appointed as ... (read more)

Security relaxed at Sudha Sadan

Sunday, June 17th, 2007The government yesterday relaxed the tight security around Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina's residence Sudha Sadan at Dhanmondi in the city.One of the three tiers of the security blanket around Hasina's house was removed after several days of heightened watch ahead of the AL chief's planned visit to the United States to see her expecting daughter. Hasina postponed the tour as the government did not allow her to leave the country.Earlier on Thursday, the government imposed restrictions on Hasina's leaving the country for "the sake of investigation" into the graft cases filed against her.A total of 12 platoons of ... (read more)