Archive for August 18th, 2007
Saturday, August 18th, 2007The flood-affected people, who were preparing to return home following the devastating floods, are now trapped again as many areas were freshly inundated by rain-fed rivers.All the three major rivers--the Padma, Meghna and Jamuna--saw sharp rise in their water levels, while the Jamuna at Aricha was flowing at the danger level yesterday evening and could go over the mark any time, said Ariful Islam, assistant engineer of Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC).Vigorously active monsoon over the eastern part of Bihar, West Bengal and Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and the Ganges and Brahmaputra and Meghna basins, both in India and Bangladesh, ...
(read more) Saturday, August 18th, 2007 Awami League (AL) plans to continue legal battle for its detained President Sheikh Hasina until the time is ripe for alternatives including a movement to get her free.A number of its leaders also observed that it might opt out of any dialogue to be arranged by the Election Commission (EC).Alongside the legal efforts, the party has been trying to mobilise international support so that pressure builds up on the military-backed caretaker government to free Hasina, also a former prime minister now detained for over a month on extortion charges.During the last one month AL chapters in different countries ...
(read more) Saturday, August 18th, 2007A Tk 350 crore project for producing octane from naphtha that became uncertain due to withdrawal of its main investor Exxon-Mobil has got new foreign investors and the project is now progressing in full swing.A top official of Mobil Jamuna Fuel Company (MJFC) said Exxon-Mobil's 50 percent equity is now being taken over by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group, DAG of German government and FMO of the Netherlands government. The project is set to be completed by 2009.The government in November last year signed a contract with Bangladesh-US joint venture MJFC to set up the ...
(read more) Saturday, August 18th, 2007BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia said she will nominate a leader of her own choice to run the party in her absence and everybody should work under that new leadership.Asked who will take over the post of the party chairperson if she is arrested, Khaleda said during a teleconference on Thursday night, "Someone will take the responsibility and everyone has to work under his/her leadership."They [government] can arrest me if they want, but you should not lose confidence," she said while talking to leaders and workers of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) unit of Jahangirnagar University at a room of Maolana Bhashani ...
(read more) Saturday, August 18th, 2007Demanding withdrawal of the ban on indoor politics before holding talks with political parties, BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan yesterday said the Election Commission (EC) should put all its efforts in preparing a complete voter list."The commission should be mainly focused on preparing the voter list so that the roadmap could be followed properly," Bhuiyan told reporters at his Gulshan residence.Earlier Wednesday, Election Commissioner Sohul Hossain told reporters that they are planning to hold talks with the political parities in September regarding the commission's proposals.But Bhuiyan yesterday said it would be sufficient if the talks are held eight-ten months ...
(read more) Saturday, August 18th, 2007Malaysia is reviewing the present outsourcing system of recruiting Bangladeshi workers as it led to exploitation of workers subjecting them to abuses, underemployment with lower wages and unemployment.Kuala Lumpur initiated the review process following repeated requests from Dhaka saying workers are more likely to be abused through this system, according to officials of the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment." The Malaysian government started reviewing the mechanism of hiring workers through outsourcing companies as we had earlier notified it about the matter and our high commissioner in Malayasia is communicating with the authorities there time to time," a senior ...
(read more) Saturday, August 18th, 2007Finance ministers from eight South Asian countries will meet in New Delhi on September 14 for operationalising the $300 million Saarc Development Fund (SDF).The fund was created as the member states of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) had pledged to support projects to alleviate poverty and improve status of the peoples of the region.Finance Adviser Dr Mirza AB Azizul Islam will lead the Bangladesh delegation at the meeting being hosted by India as the current chair of Saarc.The Delhi meeting, to be preceded by a meeting of the Saarc finance secretaries of the member states on September ...
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