Archive for November 19th, 2007
Monday, November 19th, 2007The Cyclone Sidr apparently held the real degree of its destruction in store for the nation until yesterday, four days into the catastrophe, with the government gradually raising the death toll to 2,299 and Red Crescent fearing causalities as high as 10,000."We have already identified 2,750 bodies. Based on our experience in the past and reports from the scene, I would suggest the death toll may be as high as 10,000," said Prof M Abdur Rob, chairman of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society, told the press in city yesterday.The government rescuers could recover 515 more bodies in 24 hours ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007 Four days into the hurricane, in Majher Killa, the furthest corner of Dublarchar and the worst-hit area, still reeling from the devastation with bodies being recovered; and the need of the moment is water. Eight more bodies were found here and many more are feared buried deep in the forest.Dead sea snakes and fish floated in the water as our boat approached the island frilled by leafless trees. On the ground, it is sheer devastation itself. First come the reeds, once six to eight feet tall, now flattened to the ground. A few people are trying to salvage a fishing ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007The High Court (HC) yesterday stayed for four weeks operation of the Election Commission's (EC) letter inviting Maj (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed to its electoral talks as the BNP representative.In a rule, it also asked the EC, acting secretary general and six members of the BNP standing committee and chief adviser of the caretaker government to reply within three weeks why the letter would not be declared illegal.The pro-Khaleda faction has welcomed the HC decision while Saifur-Hafiz-led faction said they hope the commission will be able to remove the obstacles to holding the dialogue slated for November 22 through legal ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007Donor nations and agencies have pledged over US$ 25 million in assistance to help Bangladesh meet the requirements rising in the aftermath of Cyclone Sidr. This assurance for help has come before the government has made any formal appeal for international assistance.The donor nations and agencies have also made further commitments to provide short and long term assistance to cyclone victims.Douglas Broderick, representative of World Food Program (WFP), after a meeting with Food And Disaster Management Ministry said that the donor nations have started their own assessment with the help of five teams already visiting the cyclone-affected areas.Broderick, while speaking ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007November 18, Dublar Char It was a grim reminder of modern day slavery when the navy yesterday rescued 106 people from Meher Ali Island in the Bay, 110km off Mongla. The cyclone that took away the lives of so many had worked as a bane for them when the navy rescue team reached them by chance.Badly sun-burnt and injured from beatings by their "masters"--rich fish traders and one name was mentioned by everyone, Major (retd) Ziauddin, often dubbed in this inaccessible land as the lord of the jungle island--these people were tricked by middlemen who lured them with the promise of ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007Bangladesh Red Crescent Society yesterday said it has appealed for Tk 40 crore in international assistance for the victims of hurricane Sidr.Bangladesh Red Crescent Society Chairman Prof M Abdur Rob in a press conference at the Society's head office said the organisation has made the appeal via Geneva-based International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)."We have appealed for Tk 40 crore primarily and we will make the final appeal by Friday after completing the assessment of the losses. We hope to receive responses within a few days," he added."We have already identified 2,750 bodies and the ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007Six men were washed ashore at different points of Shaplerjar Maajher Char in the Baleshwar river Friday morning. It seemed they were the only survivors among those onboard at least 250 fishing trawlers, each manning eight-10 men.Four of them were found unconscious and two barely able to speak. Locals said they are fishermen whose 10-man trawler went down as Sidr struck Thursday night.The lucky fishermen said their trawler sank at Tekdia, nearly 50km away from the southernmost tip of Barguna.Mamun walked from Shaplerjar to his home in Barguna late Friday after a local gave him a lungi, all six men ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007Char Momtaz is just a strip of barren land on seashore, barely 120 km away from Patuakhali. The surge of water that the storm pushed ashore by Cyclone Sidr has claimed the lives of almost 300 men in these shores.Back in 1970 the last disastrous cyclone in this area rendered the land bereft of most of its inhabitants. Locals say only a handful of people survived the wrath of nature back then. Residents say they faced worse danger this time round.Farid Gazi, a 60-year-old resident here lost six of his family members to the cyclone in 1970. The elderly survivor ...
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007Thousands of the shrimp farmers in the coastal belt are facing catastrophe as cyclone Sidr has ripped the heart out of one of the key production areas for the country's second largest export industry.In Morelganj and Sharankhola upazilas alone, more than 90 percent of some 5,000 shrimp enclosures were destroyed by the storm surge.Now shrimp farmers, many of whom have lost loved ones and their homes, face the added burden of huge debts incurred by their now destroyed businesses.
(read more) Monday, November 19th, 2007More than 2,000 consignments of Bangladeshi garments exported to Germany have been hit by a special 12 percent security deposit due to fears over the widespread abuse of certificates that allows the country's products duty-free access.German authorities imposed the security deposit on September 17 following investigations that showed that several companies had been exporting products to European countries using fake Bangladeshi GSP (generalised system of preference) certificates.Under the new rules importers must pay German customs a deposit of 12 percent of the value of the consignment. The money is refunded only when the GSP certificate is fully verified. Local exporters ...
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