Archive for April 22nd, 2008
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008Four state-owned commercial banks (SCBs) achieved only 21 percent of their targeted loan recovery from the top 20 defaulters of each bank last year.Moreover, the banks' credit disbursement was frustrating with that of Sonali Bank and Janata Bank declining by 16 percent and 13 percent in the year.Credit disbursement of Agrani Bank increased by 12 percent and Rupali Bank's three percent only, available data shows.Bangladesh Bank (BB) at a meeting with top brass of the four SCBs yesterday reviewed their overall performances in 2007.BB Governor Salehuddin Ahmed expressed dissatisfaction over the poor recovery of defaulted loans.Sources said the SCB ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008At least 30 people including eight policemen were injured when garment workers clashed with the police at Dhaka Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in Savar yesterday.Witnesses said the workers of Aamra Apparel Ltd began demonstrations on the factory premises at around 10:00am after what later turned out to be rumours that the authorities had decided to axe around 100 workers as part of retrenchment.They damaged at least 15 rooms with computers and other valuables, and confined administrative officials to a room on the 2nd floor of the factory building.On information, Ashulia police rushed to the spot to free the factory officials ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008The Election Commission's (EC) move to have a united BNP in the electoral reforms talks appears to have failed with both the factions vying again for EC's invitation.Following the developments, the EC has opted to wait for a copy of the High Court's decision on the BNP issue to decide whether it should sit with any one faction or wrap up the dialogue.“Reconciliation between the BNP groups seems to be a distant possibility,” Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda, who met the rival camps twice in the last five days, told reporters yesterday.Asked what would be their ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008New US Ambassador to Bangladesh James F Moriarty yesterday said the state of emergency should be lifted as it will be 'extremely difficult' to hold an election under emergency rules.At a news conference in the American Club just hours after presenting his credentials to President Iajuddin Ahmed yesterday morning, Moriarty said the emergency does not allow political parties to campaign for elections and hinders other electoral preparations."I will tell the government…that the United States believes credible elections would be extremely difficult under a state of emergency and it should be lifted," said Moriarty in his first news conference since arriving ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) and Workers Party of Bangladesh yesterday asked the government to declare specific date for holding the national election in line with the electoral roadmap and to lift the state of emergency.At separate meetings with four advisers, both the left parties also called for trying the war criminals and implementing National Women Development Policy 2008 without any change.Law Adviser AF Hassan Ariff, Communications Adviser Ghulam Quader, LGRD Adviser Anwarul Iqbal and Commerce Adviser Hossain Zillur Rahman sat with the representatives of the parties at the state guesthouse Meghna as part of the ongoing informal ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008Writer Mumina Deyasini, 56, wife of deceased Dhaka University professor Dr Sultan Ahmed, was slaughtered in her Dhanmondi apartment yesterday afternoon.Security guards of the apartment complex apprehended the alleged killer, Faruq Hossain, 23, a distant relative of the victim, while he was fleeing the scene.Faruq, a 3rd-year honours resident student at Dhaka College, studying in English, later admitted to police that he had killed his aunt as she refused to pay for his meal expenses at the college.Police recovered the bloodstained knife used in the killing from underneath the elevator mat of the building.Mumina was a former librarian at Udayan ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008Bangladesh could turn into a food surplus country provided the government ensures supply of quality seeds, fertiliser, diesel and electricity to farmers in time.And for this, the government has to disseminate validated agricultural information to farmers and make sure that those are updated with latest technologies to get the best harvest and protect crops from any diseases.These were the eloquent views of successful farmers at a workshop in the capital yesterday while prices of food grains are soaring in Bangladesh and as well as other parts of the world.In response to the farmers' views, Agriculture Adviser Dr CS Karim, ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008The Finance Division yesterday released a loan of Tk 1,000 crore to the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) at 3 percent interest rate as a temporary solution for the corporation's acute liquidity crisis."The finance ministry released the loan to the BPC for the first time, which will be paid back in 20 years," said a source in the energy ministry adding, "The money was urgent as the BPC was unable to open LC (letter of credit) for fuel import due to financial crisis."Earlier, the Finance Division gave Tk 700 crore to BPC as subsidy while another Tk 730 crore came from ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008As city dwellers struggle to keep the heat out, the four-legged inhabitants of the zoo are also finding it difficult to keep cool in the sweltering weather.No extra care is available for the captive animals of the zoo in this heat, making many of them weaker.Water in the artificial canals in sheds C-21 and C-22 -- the semi-natural sheds made for tigers -- is less than a foot deep, making it almost impossible for the tigers to take a dip in it to seek some solace from the heat.A tiger was seen yesterday trying in vain to take a ...
(read more) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008Samajik Protirodh Committee, a platform of 40 women and women rights organisations, yesterday submitted a five-point memorandum to the chief adviser demanding immediate dissolution of the review committee of the Women Development Policy and scrapping of the committee's recommendations.Asking the government to take steps to stop political activities at religious establishments, the Samajik Protirodh Committee asked the government to announce programmes to implement the policy, a realistic step towards constitutional provisions for equal rights to men and women.Demanding the government make a pledge before the nation to establish equal rights as mentioned in the constitution, the committee urged the caretaker ...
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