Archive for January 18th, 2009
Sunday, January 18th, 2009About 4.2 square kilometre-area of the underground Barapukuria coal mine site will subside by up to two metres in the mine's 30 year-life, says a highly placed Petrobangla source.Such a subsidence will create a large lake, the source pointed out.Residents of three to four villages adjacent to the mine, which are not densely populated like most villages in the country, will eventually have to be relocated.Though land subsidence is a natural consequence of underground mining, the issue was omitted in the planning and approval of the mining project in the early nineties under Khaleda Zia's rule.As a result, ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is looking into allegations that Calgary-based energy company Niko Resources Ltd or its subsidiary made improper payments to public officials in Bangladesh to bag a joint venture deal with Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration Company (Bapex) to develop three marginal gas fields.The Canadian press reported Friday that Niko authorities had confirmed rumours that a RCMP probe was underway.Murray Hesje, Niko's chief financial officer, said, "They were simply willing to confirm that yes, there was an investigation under way and they were willing to name the country that was involved, being Bangladesh. But they provided no ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009Israel pummelled Gaza with new strikes yesterday destroying 50 targets, including a UN-run school sheltering hundreds of refuges in the north, hours before an expected unilateral halt to a 22-day war on Hamas.The Israeli security cabinet was to convene later on Saturday to consider ordering a halt to its offensive, which has killed more than 1,200 Palestinians and left much of Gaza in ruins.But even before any official announcement, Hamas said they would not be laying down their arms as Israel still planned to keep its troops in Gaza."This unilateral ceasefire does not foresee a withdrawal" by the Israeli army, ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009The government perks and other benefits for the khatib of Baitul Mukarram National Mosque, who enjoys the status of a joint secretary, seem to be the main reason behind the troubles brewed often centring the post.Apart from getting a government car for use and home allowance, a khatib receives a handsome monthly salary and enjoys the chairmanship of Islami Bank's Shariah Council.He also holds the posts of adviser or member of other Islami banks and insurance companies.But the most attractive side of becoming a khatib is the gifts (hadia) given by people at home and abroad."The main source ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009Academic and administrative activities of Chittagong University (CU) came to a standstill yesterday as activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) CU unit padlocked the main gate including all faculty buildings.BCL activists also laid a siege to the Vice Chancellor (VC) Professor Dr M Badiul Alam's residence and demanded his resignation.Agitating BCL men vandalised windowpanes of proctor office and some chairs of the Chittagong University Central Students' Union (CUCSU) in the morning.CU BCL General Secretary Mohammad Ershad Ullah said the VC appointed during the tenure of the past BNP-led four-party alliance government was patronising the Islami Chhatra Shibir (ICS), the ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009The document the BNP recently came up with to substantiate its claim of rigging and irregularities in the ninth parliamentary election is not accurate as it mentions an incorrect number of voters at the polling station concerned.At a press briefing on Friday senior BNP leaders presented erroneous figures in the result sheet of Gahelapur High School poll centre in Raninagar upazila of Naogaon-6 constituency as their evidence of poll rigging.The result sheet of the polling station shows that 3,845 votes were cast at the centre while 3,768 voters were entitled to cast their votes there. Casting of 77 more votes ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009Ammonia mixed toxic gas and urea dust emitted from Jamuna Fertiliser Factory (JFF) in Jamalpur have allegedly been wreaking havoc on the local environment and causing debilitating illnesses among the locals.The toxic gas of the largest urea producing factory, at Tarandani of Sarishabari upazila in Tangail, has also been harming crops, trees, livestock, poultry and fish resources for the last 17 years. Many trees around the factory do not have a single leaf.Locals held protest programmes--forming human chains, barricading the factory gate, submitting memorandums to the JFF authorities--but nothing was achieved. A number of locals have started moving ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009Although ruling party Awami League's associated student organisation Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) has been clashing among themselves and with rival student organisations on campuses of different educational institutions all over the country since the recent parliamentary election, the home ministry is 'still investigating' the incidents."It's not clear why such violent incidents are taking place in educational institutions despite our instruction to law enforcers to take drastic actions against the trouble makers. We're investigating, and after that it will be clear who are behind the violent incidents," Home Minister Shahara Khatun told The Daily Star yesterday.Over the last few ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009Abdus Shahid, who was picked to be chief whip by prime minister, said the nation would not accept any war criminal as the deputy speaker of the parliament if the opposition party proposes such name."The nation will not accept any war criminal as the deputy speaker as the nation has rejected them in the December 29 polls," Shahid said while briefing the journalists at his residence yesterday.The opposition party will have to wait until the first day of the first session of the Jatiya Sangsad, called by President Dr Iajuddin Ahmed on January 25, he said."We all agree with ...
(read more) Sunday, January 18th, 2009The government will confiscate dealership licences and forfeit security money if any dealer is found selling fertiliser at a higher price than the government-fixed rate.“Nobody can charge extra money for fertiliser. If anybody is found doing it, then the government will take stern punitive measure against the person concerned,” said Agriculture Secretary Sheikh Enayet Ullah at a press conference at his Secretariat office yesterday.He also said the deputy commissioners (DCs) have already been instructed to monitor stock of fertiliser and its prices at field level and send a report accordingly to the ministry concerned.Besides, central monitoring cell on fertiliser set ...
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