The Daily Star: Internet Edition Fri. July 09, 2004

Volume 5 Number 44

Fri. July 09, 2004


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Front Page	Viral epidemic hits Bagerhat shrimp hatcheries Shrimps and fry of about 800 hatcheries of Baroipara in Bagerhat have died due to virus infection and white spot disease, causing Tk 100 crore loss to over 6000 shrimp farmers.
	Panam Nagar's fate in limbo The residents of Panam Nagar remained unbent on vacating their houses and many of them continued throwing up new structures 15 months after the government declared the old town as a archaeologically preserved
	DCC ups outlay to fight mosquito Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) has enhanced budgetary allocation to Tk 17.
	UK envoy talks shrine attack with FM British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Anwar Choudhury yesterday discussed with Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan status of the probe into the grenade attack at Hazrat Shahjalal shrine in Sylhet.
	EC would have gone to HC if BDB did not: Acting CEC Acting Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Safiur Rahman yesterday said the Election Commission would have moved the High Court (HC) for violation of the constitution and court directives on army deployment
	PM for AL's active role in JS bodies Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has said fulfillment of commitments of the political parties given to people is only possible through parliamentary democracy.
	AL walks out in protest at PM's comment Lawmakers of the main opposition Awami League (AL) yesterday walked out of parliament yesterday protesting Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's doubt over death threat to Leader of the Opposition Sheikh Hasina
	18 Rohingyas rescued from traffickers Motijheel police yesterday rescued 18 Rohingyas and arrested three alleged human traffickers, who brought the Myanmar nationals to Dhaka for trafficking them out to Saudi Arabia with Bangladeshi passport.
	Pvt infrastructure investment rule rejected again The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs yesterday rejected for the second time a guideline for private investment in infrastructure saying many issues in it concern national interests and thereforeneed
	Desa to become holding company this year The government yesterday decided to convert Dhaka Electric Supply Authority (Desa), a loss making and union-dominated state owned enterprise, into a holding company like Desco within this year.
	US firm hired to advise on Sonali Bank A US-based consulting firm has been hired for Tk 24 crore to advise measures for smooth operation of the state-run Sonali Bank under a donor-driven financial reform recipe.
	Zia first proclaimer of independence, reprinted Liberation War history says A reprint of Swadhinota Juddher Dolilpatro, the official history of Bangladesh's Liberation War, came out yesterday with an insertion that names former president Ziaur Rahman as the proclaimer of independence.
	Independent MP accuses BNP lawmaker of making threat Independent lawmaker MM Shahin yesterday in the Jatiya Sangsad accused a ruling BNP lawmaker of issuing a threat on him at a recent public rally.
	5 GIs killed in Iraq mortar attack A mortar attack on an Iraqi national guard post in the hotbed city of Samarra on Thursday resulted in a bloodbath that left at least 10 people dead, including five US troops, and scores wounded, officials
	2pc cancer patients get treatment, 2 lakh get affected a year Only two percent of the cancer patients in Bangladesh receive treatment, while two lakh people every year get affected by the deadly disease, experts said at a press conference yesterday.
	N Korea gears up for war against US North Korea's defence chief urged soldiers yesterday to step up combat preparations, denouncing the United States for plotting an attack on the communist country.
	Rainbow rings...
	7 shot dead in Israel's Gaza raid At least seven Palestinians were shot dead and an Israeli officer was critically wounded during heavy clashes in this northern Gaza town yesterday, while Israeli troops also carried out a series of raids
	Prices of essentials skyrocket Amid skyrocketing prices of essentials, city dwellers have started to feel the pinch.
	Ex-Enron chairman indicted in accounting fraud Former Enron Corp. chairman Kenneth Lay was formally indicted for his role in the massive accounting fraud that brought the energy trading titan to its knees in late 2001.
	2 US soldiers seek asylum in Canada over Iraq war Two US soldiers who are pleading for asylum in Canada after walking out on their units over fierce objections to the Iraq war appeared side-by-side in a Toronto courtroom for the first time.
	Rajuk removes 'demarcation' poles from Banani lake Rajuk officials have removed the bamboo poles in the Gulshan-Baridhara-Banani Lake along Banani Road No. 23/C posted by individuals to demarcate plots they claim to own.
	Robbers choke shop owner in Cox's Bazar Armed robbers yesterday strangulated a shop owner before looting cash and other valuables reportedly worth Tk 2 crore from a kitchen market in Cox's Bazar.
	8 killed, 25 hurt in road crashes At least eight people were killed and 25 others injured in road accidents in Cox's Bazar and Laxmipur yesterday. Of them, six were killed in Cox's Bazar and the rest in Laxmipur.
	Not a circus...
	'Pichchi' Hannan remanded in arms case A Dhaka court yesterday placed dreaded criminal 'Pichchi' Hannan, arrested in a Savar clinic, on a 10-day remand in an arms case.
	2 CHT children suspected to have polio Two indigenous children are suspected to be polio affected and remain under treatment in the Bandarban General Hospital.
	Morshed Khan leaves for Vietnam July 12 Foreign minister M Morshed Khan leaves for Vietnam on July 12 on a three-day official visit at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Dy Nien.
	Munshiganj jail super faces contempt of court charge A Dhaka court yesterday ordered the superintendent of Munshiganj jail to appear before it in person and explain as to why he would not be held in contempt of court.
	Design faults blamed for 70pc launch disasters About 500 launch accidents occurred in the last 26 years and 70 percent of those happened mainly for faulty design of the vessels, said a study conducted by Nirapad Noupath Bastabayan Jote.
	DB man turned for assaulting commissioner Locals yesterday held a Detective Branch (DB) of police sub-inspector and turned him to Sutrapur Police Station for allegedly assaulting the local ward commissioner and contractors of Dhaka Electric Supply
	Verdict in case against SQ Chy shifted to July 21 Judgment in the trial for firearms and ammunition recovery from Salauddin Quader Chowdhury's city residence could not be announced here yesterday.
	3 found dead in sleep Three people were found dead at their relative's house at Ludurpur village in Jagannathpur upazila of the district yesterday morning.
Business	IPO fails to get SEC nod for concealing facts The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has served an explanation notice on a non-banking financial institution and its issue manager for trying to clear a prospectus by concealing facts to justify
	Indian budget focuses on agriculture, investment To protect ruling Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA)'s new political constituency of farmers and rural poor, the Indian budget yesterday unveiled several sops and projects to boost the agriculture
	Agro processors, exporters to get higher incentives: Saifur The government has increased cash incentive for agro-processing and agri-products exports from 25 percent to 30 percent from July 1.
	Bhutan seeks free trade deal with Bangladesh Bhutan yesterday sought a bilateral free trade agreement with Bangladesh with provision of zero duty access of its products to Bangladesh market.
	Economic survey identifies 5 major challenges for India If the Indian government's latest report card on the health of the country's economy and suggestions to improve it is anything to go by, Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram appears ready to comeout
	GP's move to prevent pre-paid card forgery GrameenPhone, country's leading mobile phone company, has decided to use thermal technology for preventing forgery of its EASY pre-paid card.
	Nice Food introduces new products Nice Food Products Limited, a subsidiary of RAB Group, has introduced food items in local market. The food items include noodles and stick noodles, instant soup, macaroni and chanachur.
	Siemens to co-sponsor MEDEXPO ’04 Siemens Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Triune Exhibition and Event Management Services (Teems) on Tuesday in Dhaka to become co-sponsor of MEDEXPO-2004.
	Singer, Gulshan Society sign agreement Singer Bangladesh Limited has signed a three-year agreement with Gulshan Society for sponsoring all index maps and road signs in two zones out of six zones at Gulshan in Dhaka.
	BRAC Bank signs deal with Progressive Life Ins BRAC Bank Ltd has recently signed an agreement with Progressive Life Insurance Company Ltd on Nationwide Collection Service (NCS) and Nationwide Payment Service (NPS), says a press release.
	China worried about US tariff penalties against shrimps Beijing voiced deep concern Thursday about a US decision to slap punitive duties on Chinese shrimp exports after allegations of "dumping," but played down the dispute as a normal part of trade.
	Oil prices rise ahead of latest US stocks data Oil prices climbed on Thursday ahead of weekly estimates of US inventories expected to show a modest rise in crude oil stocks but a fall in those of gasoline.
Sports	Tennis: Nat'l tennis ends quietly The climax to the National Tennis Championship yesterday was definitely one to look forward to for finalists, fellow players, parents and enthusiastic officials alike at the Ramna National Tennis Complex.
	Football: NFL a day later Heavy rainfall in Mymensingh has forced the organisers to delay the start of the 12-team finals round of the fourth Nitol-Tata National Football League by a day.
	Cricket: Ponting frightens SL Skipper Ricky Ponting believes the Sri Lankans don't have the stomach to resist Australia's pace attack and he wants to keep them under the cosh in the second cricket Test starting here on Friday.
	Cricket: Ganguly not complacent Sourav Ganguly on Thursday said that while he was encouraged by India's performances last season, the players needed to guard against complacency and ensure that they improved on their display this year.
	Cricket: 'Take rest, Vaughan' England coach Duncan Fletcher said Wednesday that he was not overly concerned by the recent slump of captain Michael Vaughan and would be prescribing rest as the team skipper attempts to rediscover his
	Cricket: Peace talks on in Zim Lawyers representing the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) and 15 striking white players were in exploratory talks here today Thursday to see if there is any way to break the three month impasse caused bythe
	Cricket: 'Keep Darwin, Cairns Tests' Ricky Ponting on Thursday urged Cricket Australia to stick with Cairns and Darwin as Test cricket venues amid reports that the experiment with tropical northern tours will be phased out.
	Tennis: Serena, Sharapova coming to China Serena Williams and her Wimbledon conqueror Maria Sharapova have signed up for the inaugural China Open, a tournament organisers want to make the premier tennis event in Asia.
	Tennis: Federer immortalised After etching his name into the Wimbledon record books with a second straight title, Roger Federer watched Wednesday as a sculptor worked to immortalise his image on a bust commissioned by organisersat
	Cricket: Tigers' 2nd warm-up today Bangladesh will rest middle order batsman Faisal Hossain and paceman Tareq Aziz for their second warm-up match against a Sri Lankan Invitational XI in Colombo today, a Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) source
	Football: BKSP Cup semis today The BKSP CUP Under-16 football tournament will not become an all BKSP affair as the two teams of the sports institute were left facing each other in one of today's semifinals.
	Cricket: Kiwi-Windies tie rained off Rain forced the NatWest Series one-day international between New Zealand and the West Indies at the Rose Bowl here Thursday to be abandoned without a ball being bowled.
	BSWA prize distribution The prize distribution ceremony of Bangladesh Sports Writers Association (BSWA) for the years 2000, 2001 and 2002 will be held today at Sonargaon Hotel's Ball Room at 3.30 pm. President Dr.
	Bhola Lal keeps winning Bhola Lal maintained his winning streak in the 2nd AP-Accesstel squash tournament when he beat Delwar Hossain 9-4, 9-5, 9-1 in yesterday's Premier Division match at the Dhaka Club squash court.
	Football: Pioneer soccer Tipu scored the lone goal in Avijatrik's 1-0 win over Jatrabari Jhotika Sangsad in yesterday's east zone match of Shinepukur Ceramics Pioneer Football League at Dhupkhola ground.
	Cricket: Contracts not before Asia Cup? India's cricketers will have to wait for some more time for their central contracts with the board.
	Cricket: Cricket makes Asian Games Cricket will be played for the first time at the Asian Games during the 2006 meet in Doha, Qatar, in keeping with the sport's growing popularity in the continent, a top sports official said on Thursday.
	Football: Rampaging Argentina Javier Saviola notched a hat trick as Argentina crushed Ecuador 6-1 while Mexico blew a 2-1 lead and man advantage in conceding a 2-2 draw with Uruguay in the Copa America on Wednesday.
	Football: Greek hope German coach Otto Rehhagel will honour his contract with European champions Greece through to the 2006 World Cup, Greek football chief Vassilis Gagatsis said Wednesday.
	Football: Inter assign Mancini Roberto Mancini has taken over as coach of Inter Milan, joining the Serie A side with a three-year deal after resolving a dispute with Lazio , the club announced on Wednesday.
	Football: Desailly fancies Celtic? Former France captain Marcel Desailly wants to play for Scottish champions Celtic.
	Football: New France coach on Monday French football federation president Claude Simonet has delayed naming the new France coach until next Monday after finishing interviewing leading candidates.
	Football: No Real move yet Liverpool insisted Thursday that Real Madrid had not been in touch over their Czech Republic striker Milan Baros.
Culture	Film Festival In the first of the series of film sessions focusing on the best film festivals in the world, Bangladesh Federation of Film Societies, in association with the Russian Cultural Centre in Dhaka, will organise
	Dhaka Drama Festival 2004 Teerthankar Narrating the story of the warlords The young, yet talented, stage playwright and actress Samina Lutfa Nitra has created ripples in the theatre world.
	A revival of Humayun Ahmed's drama Humayun Ahmed has become renowned in filmmaking, literature and TV plays.
	Talk-show Democracy on Channel-i Channel i has begun telecasting a new talk show titled Democracy from July 5 at 5.40 pm every week.
General	Protect judiciary from politicisation Prominent lawyers, politicians, journalists and civil society members at a discussion yesterday called for protecting the judiciary from politicisation and all forms of interference and undue pressure.
	Nat'l consensus a must to face challenge Though water withdrawal from the Ganges-Brahmaputra basin is a matter of regional and international concern, India is opposed to resolving the issue multilaterally, said the water experts at a workshop
	New rules for visa applicants to Canada The Canadian High Commission here has announced new rules for visa applicants to Canada.
	A tribute to Prof Kamaluddin Professor Kamaluddin Ahmad, the pioneer of the study of biochemistry and nutrition in Bangladesh and an internationally renowned scientist, passed away following a cardiac arrest on July 4 in Manila,Philippines.
	Two shot, another stabbed in city Three people were injured in three separate incidents in the capital yesterday.
	English medium schools do not follow rules Speakers at a roundtable yesterday urged the government to frame laws to bring English medium schools under a regulation.
	Mahbub Anam's anniversary of death today Today is the third death anniversary of Mahbub Anam, former editor of The Bangladesh Times. He passed away on this day in 2001 after suffering from cancer of the pancreas.
	Maj Shahjahan laid to rest Major Mohammad Shahjahan, killed in a helicopter crash in Sierra Leone, was laid to rest with full military honour at his family graveyard at Kalemshar village in Chandina, Comilla yesterday.
	Family members of Dr Shahidullah meet president Family members of linguist Dr Muhammad Shahidullah yesterday met President Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban and requested for government steps to observe the birth and death anniversary of the language veteran
	Non-govt pry teachers threaten strike from tomorrow Non-government primary school teachers yesterday concluded their six-day work abstention programme but threatened to enforce a nonstop shutdown programme from Saturday.
	No plan to nationalise any more schools, colleges There are 414 private degree and 1,876 intermediate colleges in the country.
	Campe directory launched The third edition of a directory of non-government organisations (NGOs) working in the education sector was launched yesterday with a view to spreading the campaign for popular education across the country.
	Newly refurbished British Council library inaugurated The newly refurbished library of the British Council was inaugurated yesterday to provide better services to the students, says a press release.
	Theft at city market Burglars committed theft at a shop at Motijheel market in the early hours of yesterday and took away valuables worth around Tk 14 lakh.
	1,222 moe held Police arrested 1,222 people on various charges during their countrywide drive in last 24 hours till 6.00am yesterday.
Editorial	Editorial: Court ruling We are heartened by the fact that the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has taken forthright decisions on two points laid before it.
	Editorial: Education for out-of-school children It is laudable on the part of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) to have approved a multimillion-dollar project to provide primary education to two million children who remain
	What does the BNP know that we don't? Right from the start, it seemed as though the ruling four-party alliance had made the decision that it simply had to win the Dhaka-10 by-election by any means necessary.
	In the mind's eye If you leave out the eyes, the mind is the only other thing which goes blind. Anger, for example, is when the mind screams out of frustration because it has lost its sight.
	Bangladesh needs a political alternative Some 70 million people lives below the poverty line. About 80 million people are virtually illiterate. About 90 million people do not have access to health care.
Letters to Editor	Sovereignty, what sovereignty? Although vague and unworkable, references to freedom and democracy figure strongly in the rhetoric of the new Iraq.
	'Talaq' in the eye of religion I am highly pleased to read about the above subject , written by Asgar Ali Engineer! Very likely, our country still follows the rule of the Indian subcontinent, constituted before 1945! Therefore we
	Football, a lost art? Euro 2004 has just ended. the Portuguese supporters are still in shock and the land of ancient gods is still restless in sheer disbelief of glory and achievement.
	High heel shoes and shackles Historically, particularly in conservative background from which our roots can possibly be traced, women were shackled, hooded and kept under wraps.
	Politicisation of the administration I thank you and the author of 'Politicisation of the administration' published in DS on 1.7.04.
	It's not abnormal ! It seems completely ridiculous to expect fair election and talk about corruption and fake voting under an elected government.
	"Bikolpa" or "Ekei" Dhara? We all know the Bikolpa Dhara Bangladesh (BDB) was launched with a loud announcement that it would be a "true" alternative forum of new politico cultural lines, shrugging off the existing old political
	About a headline I would like to draw the attention of the editor about the news item titled "AL walks out as talks on by-polls denied".
	Killing of expatriates Abduction and killing of expatriates are becoming a daily affair and we are as usual getting used to it.
	Bangla Bhai There are three types of friends- real, friend's friend and enemy's enemy as it is defined in 'Kalila Va Dimona' a book of anecdotes narrated by two symbolic jackals 'Kalila' & 'Dimona' which was written
	External interference? This refers to a letter published in DS (July 4). I cannot agree with the writer's views.
	Politics For some of us politics in Bangladesh is a schizophrenic affair. Once in my dreamy state, I was appointed finance minister.
	Good news Congratulation to Abdur Rahim Bacchu Mia for his silent revolution of cultivating pineapple, replacing harmful tobacco.
World	Israel not ready to ban nukes Prime Minister Ariel Sharon held talks with UN nuclear chief Mohamed ElBaradei here yesterday after Israel made clear it is not ready to work toward banning nuclear weapons from the Middle East whileIran
	Philippines bans citizens from travelling to Iraq The Philippines yesterday banned its nationals from travelling to Iraq and established contact with the Iraqi insurgent kidnappers who are threatening to execute a Filipino worker.
	Tigers say elements opposed to peace behind attack Tamil Tiger rebels yesterday denied involvement in the first suicide bombing in the Sri Lankan capital since 2001 and accused government forces of paving the way for the attack.
	Thailand bans fowl movement The Thai Agriculture Ministry on Wednesday declared Ayutthaya and Pathum Thani "yellow zone" surveillance areas after a fresh outbreak of bird flu recently resurfaced in the two provinces.
	'Nepali Maoists to renew truce if demand met' Maoist rebels fighting to topple Nepal's monarchy would be ready for a new ceasefire if the government meets their key demand of an assembly to rewrite the constitution, a senior guerrilla said Wednesday.
	Rice calls for more talks with China US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice cited the need for higher level dialogue with China yesterday as she met with the country's top leaders on the East Asian hotspots of North Korea and Taiwan.
	US urged to take lead against trafficking The illicit trade in people for sex and forced labour is a fast-growing multibillion-dollar business aided by official neglect, corruption, lust and greed, activists told US lawmakers Wednesday, urging
	Israel struggles to put human face on barrier As an army officer outlines how Israel is trying to minimise the impact of its vast West Bank barrier on the civilian population, a Palestinian farmer pulls up on his mule-drawn cart in front of the soldiers
	US reserve forces stretched to limit In a bipartisan show of concern that the military is dangerously overworked, lawmakers said Wednesday the Pentagon is stretching troops to their limit and perhaps undermining the nation's future force.
	US sets up new panels The US government is setting up new military tribunals to review the legal status of terror suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, the Pentagon says.