Archive for March 10th, 2008
Monday, March 10th, 2008Prices of two essential commodities, rice and edible oil, went up further on local markets over the last two days.The prices went up mainly due to an imposition of a fresh restriction on rice export by the Indian government on Saturday, and due to hoarding of edible oil by some local large scale traders and mill owners, traders of the commodities said yesterday.The Indian government in a sudden move imposed a fresh restriction on export of coarse rice, barring export of the essential commodity at prices lower than US$650 a ton.Since the imposition of new restriction, Indian traders have ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008The government is likely to revise the budget for the current fiscal year, by downsizing the development budget and expanding the revenue budget.The revenue budget might be expanded by 16 percent -- mainly to cover additional expenditures in subsidies, social safety net programmes and interest payments on government borrowings.The Tk 87,137 crore budget for the FY08 may exceed Tk 90,000 crore with the additional expenditure, a high official at the finance ministry told The Daily Star."The finance and planning ministries are now working out the revised budget and they will come up with revised figures by the end of this ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008The hearing on charge framing against Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina and six others in the barge-mounted power plant graft case began yesterday.After hearing the prosecution, Special Court-1 adjourned the proceedings till March 13 and also fixed the day for the defence submission.It was the seventh sitting since February 3 as the hearing was adjourned on previous six occasions.Hasina, the now detained former prime minister, complained she was taken to the court despite her worsening health.She was brought to the makeshift court at the MP Hostel on Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban premises at around 10:25am. On arrival, ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008The council of advisers to the caretaker government is set to finalise proposals for revoking power of members of parliament over upazila parishads and to empower the Election Commission (EC) to announce schedules for holding polls to the parishads."Finalising the proposed amendment to the Upazila Parishad Act is on the agenda for tomorrow's [Monday] cabinet meeting. If the council of advisers gives final approval, then the president will promulgate an ordinance amending the Upazila Parishad Act," Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) and Cooperatives Adviser Anwarul Iqbal told The Daily Star yesterday.Once the Upazila Parishad Act is amended, the ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008The government is going to cancel today the process of Rupali Bank sale to Saudi Prince Bandar Bin Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al-Saud after deals and negotiations for two years.A proposal to cancel the overall sale process will be placed at the Advisory Committee on Economic Affairs meeting today.The meeting chaired by Finance Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam is also likely to decide the fate of the crisis-ridden state-owned bank.The cancellation proposal carries detailed description of the selling process, which started in May 2005 when the government initially offered to sell 67 percent of the bank.Several investors submitted expressions of interest with ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008Although the government has announced the much-awaited national policy for women development to ensure equity for men and women in all spheres of life, it has not fixed any timeframe for its implementation.The caretaker government will soon start implementing the short-term programmes but implementation of the long-term ones will depend on the will of the next governments, said Women and Children Affairs Adviser Rasheda K Choudhury yesterday.The short-term programmes include raising maternity leave from four months to five months, ensuring appointment of equally qualified women to public positions, taking steps to stop the suffering of women working abroad, and launching ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008Three specialist doctors yesterday said detained Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina should be sent abroad immediately for treatment of her ears as she runs the risk of going completely deaf.ENT specialist Prof Pran Gopal Dutta, ophthalmologist Prof Modasser Ali, and heart surgeon Dr MH Millat--all her personal physicians--examined the former prime minister for about two hours at the sub-jail and later placed the recommendations to the jail authorities."If she is not sent abroad for treatment she could become permanently deaf," said Prof Pran Gopal, adding that proper treatment of her ears is not possible here.Talking to reporters ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008M Saifur Rahman, the standing committee-appointed acting chairman of BNP, has rejected pro-Khaleda leader Brig Gen (retd) Hannan Shah's proposal to cancel the decisions made by the party's standing committee on October 29."Hannan Shah sent me a letter with the proposal to cancel the decision of the meeting. But if we cancel the decision, why would a discussion be held?" said Saifur while speaking with reporters following his meeting with US Chargé d'Affaires.The decisions taken by the standing committee at the meeting at his residence were to ensure democracy and accountability in the party, Saifur added.The BNP standing committee ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda yesterday said the only objective of the Election Commission (EC) is to hold parliamentary polls by 2008."Many people might say many things. But we do not want to be misguided by their utterances," Huda told journalists at the conference room of the Election Commission.Responding to the demand for his resignation by a faction of the BNP, the CEC said the EC would forge ahead with its goal.On holding the local government elections in opposition to the political parties, Huda said the EC had already announced holding of expired city corporation and municipality ...
(read more) Monday, March 10th, 2008Although St Martin's Island has been announced an ecologically critical area no government agencies are active to conserve endangered resources in and around the country's only coral island.Local people and fishermen frequently kill endangered sea turtles and catch crabs as several restaurants serve dishes of crab and shark to unaware tourists. Besides, the locals also extract corals and stones to sell those as souvenirs.During a recent visit to the St Martin's a carcase of Olive Ridely turtle was found lying on the sand. Olive Ridely is treated as a critically endangered species."If we find the carcase of a turtle ...
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