Archive for November 22nd, 2007
Thursday, November 22nd, 2007Sidr came as a nightmare to Finance Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam, turning his plan for implementing the large national budget with the goal of a high economic growth into a veritable pipe dream within the first five months of the current fiscal.The cyclone brought an extra burden to the country's sluggish economy, which had been facing a tough time since the beginning of the fiscal due to repeated floods and price hikes of petroleum products on the international market.As can be expected in such circumstances, economists suggested the government to subsidise foodstuffs for the extreme poor at least for the ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007More countries, donor agencies and financial institutions yesterday pledged relief for cyclone victims and their rehabilitation, with the World Bank offering the highest amount of $250 million.Two C-130 aircraft carrying relief items from Pakistan landed at Zia International Airport yesterday afternoon, while an Indian Air Force transport aircraft IL-76 carrying over 38 tonnes of relief materials and medical supplies are scheduled to arrive in Dhaka today.Two more C-130 aircraft are also scheduled to arrive in Dhaka from Pakistan carrying facilities for a 30-bed field hospital. A ship carrying relief materials will also sail for Bangladesh shortly, a statement from Pakistani ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007The drinking water crisis deepened in the remote cyclone affected areas, as rescuers in the south-west coast continued to recover dead bodies yesterday with the government reporting at least 1,724 still missing.The official number of missing people was 2,176 on Tuesday.Meanwhile, the full extent of the region's devastated infrastructure was slowly becoming apparent, with over half a million households ruined, crops on 16.1 lakh hectares of agricultural land worth tens of crores, and over 8,000 educational institutions fully destroyed.Several sandbar islands (char) were still reporting drinking water shortage yesterday, with islands off the coast of at least two upazilas in ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007The High Court (HC) yesterday declared illegal issuance of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) notice asking former premier Sheikh Hasina to submit her wealth statement, which worried ACC officials about the fate of their other similar notices.The HC gave the verdict after hearing of an HC rule issued in August following Hasina's filing of a writ petition to challenge the legality of the ACC notice.The verdict said the notice was served on Hasina without maintaining proper procedure.In a reaction to the verdict, ACC Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury however said, "We are not worried or demoralised by the judgment ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007A team of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) may go to the sub-jail today to record the statement of Awami League (AL) chief Sheikh Hasina in connection with a case filed for the August 21, 2004 grenade attack on AL rally at Bangabandhu Avenue.Meanwhile, a Dhaka court yesterday placed a Harkatul Jihad (Huji) activist Hafez Maulana Abu Taher on a seven-day fresh remand in connection with the same case.Deputy Inspector General (prison) Major Shamsul Haider Siddiqui yesterday told The Daily Star that a team of CID including the investigation officer (IO) of the case might go to the sub-jail to record ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007The Armed Forces Day that marks the foundation of Bangladesh military during the country's liberation war was observed yesterday with due solemnity and enthusiasm.On this day in 1971, Bangladesh Armed Forces comprising army, navy and air force came into existence and launched an all-out attack on Pakistan occupation force, expediting the country's freedom.President and Supreme Commander of the armed forces Prof Iajuddin Ahmed and Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed gave separate messages on the occasion.The day's programme began with offering munajat after Fazr prayers at all mosques at army garrisons, naval bases and establishments as well as air force bases throughout ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007The Chief Adviser's Relief and Welfare Fund has started receiving financial assistance for the cyclone victims.Interested government, non-government and autonomous offices/institutions, philanthropists and voluntary social or cultural organisations can send financial assistance to the CA's Relief and Welfare Fund (current account No-33004093, Sonali Bank, PM Office, Tejgaon), said an official release yesterday.Those interested to hand over financial assistance meeting the chief adviser have been requested to contact over phone no 8153082, fax no 8151700 or 8111490 with necessary information, including address, phone and fax numbers.Any interested person can send assistance to the Principal Secretary, CA's Office, Tejgaon, Dhaka, (attention: Assignment ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007Ruling out the possibility of lifting the state of emergency to facilitate relief work, as some political parties demand, Law Adviser Mainul Hosein yesterday urged politicians to join post-Sidr relief work without pushing their political agenda."Emergency is no bar to standing beside the suffering people at this time of natural disaster," Mainul told reporters at the Bangladesh Secretariat yesterday when his attention was drawn to political parties' poor response following the catastrophe.Political identity should not be an issue during a time of national catastrophe and the political parties do not need to wait for government invitation, he said, adding, "This ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007The enumerators collected particulars of 68,886 voters on the first day of field-level task of voter listing that got underway in Dhaka city on Tuesday.Among the VIPs, the enumerators yesterday collected particulars of Adviser to the caretaker government Chowdhury Sajjadul Karim and Secretary to the Election Commission Humayun Kabir."Election is the major element in democratic process… Free, fair and all-acceptable elections will be held through formulating a transparent voter list," Adviser Karim told reporters in the morning at his Adabar residence where his particulars were collected.The Election Commission (EC) has engaged 13,040 enumerators, 2627 supervisors, 15 thana election officers and ...
(read more) Thursday, November 22nd, 2007The Sundarbans is visible on the horizon, just on the other side of the wide Baleshwar river. Now it is very calm, no signs of devastation, just some rotten carcasses of cattle and chickens are floating on the surface.As the engine boat reached Southkhali village through the Baleshwar, it was stinking everywhere. Not a single house was visible from the riverbank, only broken and uprooted trees littered the ground. Severe signs of devastation were everywhere around the village.Among the bunch of people waiting on the riverbank, Abul Kashem Haolader, a former UP member stepped forward and said, “We don't have ...
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