Vol. 5 Num 234 Tue. January 18, 2005       Home  News Today's Index Front Page Business Sports Point-counterpoint Metropolitan National International Culture General Views Editorial Letters to Editor Write to Editor Sections Others About Us Contact Advertisement Supplements Archives Today's Index Front Page Azam Reza to die for killing wife A Dhaka court yesterday in Jayanti Reza murder trial found Azam Reza guilty and sentenced him to death for killing his wife, an architect and a teacher of English-medium school, on January 8 last year.   ACC stuck with unwanted five The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has asked the government to withdraw immediately five directors of the now-defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption (Bac) as they are hampering the smooth functioning of   SC rejects govt excuse of partial execution The Supreme Court (SC) yesterday was utterly surprised that the draft rules prepared by nine bureaucrats for judicial service and sent to the president for approval prevailed over its directives on the   Dhaka Test nicely poised Bangladesh clawed their way back on the fourth day of the second and final Test against Zimbabwe to open the window of an exciting finish at the Bangabandhu National Stadium.   Four top outlaw leaders killed in 'crossfire' Four top leaders of different outlawed parties were killed yesterday in shooting incidents involving police, Rapid Action Battalion, and the outlawed operatives in Khulna, Kushtia and Rajshahi.   Textbooks miss the session The students of classes IX and X are unlikely to get their English grammar book this month as the National Curriculum and Textbook Board is yet to finalise the script.   Suspected Islamist militant held with explosives Police arrested a youth in a house at Gabtoli upazila in the district early yesterday and seized powerful explosives and bomb-making substances from his possession.   JS body to talk violation of Mps' privileges today A high-powered parliamentary body headed by the Speaker sits today to decide on lawmakers' claim that assault on them by law enforcers and arrests and search of their houses without warrant are violations   15 cops closed for highway toll collection Fifteen Chuadanga traffic police including two sergeants were closed on Sunday for their alleged involvement in illegal highway toll collections.   Amin Bazar grenade carrier linked to Aug 21 attack Mohammad Hossain, arrested with a hand grenade on January 10 from Amin Bazar, was shown arrested in the August 21 grenade attack case yesterday and put on a three-day remand for interrogation.   Iraq attacks kill 18 Insurgents detonated a suicide car bomb at police headquarters in the Iraqi town of Baiji yesterday, killing at least 10 people, and shot dead eight Iraqi soldiers at a checkpoint in attacks ahead ofJan.   Samples sent to US for identification The health directorate yesterday sent human tissue, blood and urine samples to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, US, to determine the cause of an 'unknown' disease that has   Poor legal system reason for increasing crimes International human rights activist Asma Jahangir yesterday said poor criminal justice and legal system in the region including Bangladesh is the root cause of increasing crime and urged the governments   616 gas field fire victims get Tk 5,000 each Six hundred and sixteen affected families of two villages adjacent to the Tengratila gas field in Sunamganj were given Tk 5,000 each in immediate compensation yesterday, which instantly drew fire from   Tk 37,413 spent a month on every govt car The government spends Tk 37,413 a month against every car and Tk 58,722 for every jeep and microbus it owns, according to the estimate of government's transport directorate.   Zhao Ziyang passes away Zhao Ziyang, who was ousted as China's Communist Party leader after sympathising with the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests and became a symbol of the era's shattered hopes, died yesterdayafter   Gujarat train fire accidental A train fire that killed 59 Hindu pilgrims, setting off deadly sectarian riots in Gujarat state in 2002, was an accident and not caused by a Muslim mob as originally alleged, an Indian government investigation   Outlaws kill 2 in Kushtia Cadres of an outlawed outfit chopped dead two persons including a businessman for refusing to pay toll in Mirpur upazila of the district early yesterday.   Khulna BNP leader, two others hurt in bomb attack Chairman of Jibannagar Pourasava Noab Ali and two others were seriously injured in a bomb attack allegedly by outlaws yesterday evening.   3 cops closed for harassing female DU students Police authorities yesterday closed three policemen for assaulting a female student on the Dhaka University campus.   Removal of fish plates led to train accident Unidentified miscreants removed fish plates and fish bolts of the rail tracks to engineer Sunday's train accident on the Laksham-Chandpur route, according to preliminary findings.   WB MD reassures support The World Bank (WB) yesterday reaffirmed its continued support to Bangladesh's efforts to build a brighter future as the donor agency noticed 'immense potential' of the country for attaining prosperity.   4 die as bus skids off Dhaka-Aricha highway Four people died and 12 were injured as a bus skidded off the Dhaka-Aricha highway and fell into a ditch at Bhakurta in the upazila on Sunday night.   DITF deferred to Dec 1 Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF) 2005, which was scheduled for February-March, has been deferred to the yearend and will now begin on December 1, according to an official announcement yesterday.   Reckitt factory damaged in fire A devastating fire broke out at the Reckitt Benckiser mosquito repellant manufacturing factory in the Nasirabad Industrial Area on Sunday morning, causing property damage worth approximately Tk 1 crore,   Keeping an eye...   Tsunami toll tops 175,000 Asia's tsunami death toll soared past 175,000 yesterday as Sri Lanka confirmed thousands more dead, while fears re-emerged over the safety of aid workers in Indonesia's shattered Aceh province.   US forces inside Iran to pick sites for air strikes Teams of US commandos have been operating inside Iran since last summer, selecting suspected weapons sites for possible air strikes, The New Yorker reported yesterday.   Second of its kind... Business Cut graft, improve governance to boost growth rate: US envoy US ambassador in Dhaka yesterday urged Bangladesh government to launch fight against corruption and weak governance to accelerate the country's growth rate.   6-month revenue earnings clock 9pc growth Revenue collection amounted to Tk12,733 crore in the first half of the current financial year, posting around 9 percent growth.   Modern Cement second unit starts operation Modern Cement Ltd (MCL), a publicly traded cement company, yesterday launched operation of its second unit catering 600 tonnes of cement daily to the huge market demand.   Banking sector undergoes positive changes in 2004 Mamun Rashid (MR) is the chairman of ICC Bangladesh Standing Committee on Banking Techniques & Practice. He is also the CEO of Citibank NA, Bangladesh.   DITF 2005 now to begin on Dec 1 Dhaka International Trade Fair 2005 scheduled for February-March has been deferred to the yearend as an official announcement yesterday said the month-long exhibition will begin on December 1.   Bank holiday from Jan 20 to 23 Bangladesh Bank and all scheduled banks will remain closed from January 20 to 23 (Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday) on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha, said a Bangladesh Bank press release.   South Korea keen to invest in Bangladesh energy sector South Korea is interested to invest in Bangladesh's prepaid gas meter, construction of transmission line and deep-sea gas and oil exploration.   New executive director of Hotel Sarina Shahid Hamid has become the executive director of Hotel Sarina, a business boutique hotel in Dhaka. Hamid is also the managing director of KSS, a tour and travel wing of the same group.   Yen holds near 5-yr high vs dollar The yen held near a five-year high versus the dollar on Monday following comments by European Central Bank (ECB) officials last week seen as urging China to revalue its yuan currency.   World leaders must give more support to WTO World leaders should show more commitment to the World Trade Organisation and hold a summit every five years to bolster support for the body, a panel set up to examine the WTO's future said Monday.   Indonesia still uncertain over Paris Club debt deal Indonesia on Monday reiterated uncertainties over a debt relief package offered by the Paris Club of creditor nations, saying the deal aimed at helping tsunami relief could negatively impact the economic   Mazda, First Auto to launch joint sales firm in China Japanese automaker Mazda Motor Corp. said Monday it has won Beijing's approval to set up a joint sales firm in China with First Auto Works (FAW) and FAW subsidiary FAW Car Co. Ltd. Sports Cricket: Safety first, says Bashar Captain Habi-bul Bashar was optimistically looking at secu-ring a draw on the final day of the second and final Test to give Bangladesh a maiden series victory.   Cricket: Spinning past records When he bowls records roll, qui-pped an enthusiastic cricket fan after young left-arm spinner Enamul Haque had just dismissed another Zimbabwe batsman on the fourth day of the second Test at the Bangabandhu   Cricket: Biman secure fourth place The Green Delta Premier Division Cricket League ended yesterday with Brothers Union defeating Bangladesh Biman by 40 runs in one of the three matches on the day.   Cricket: BD-Zim fifth ODI to be a day match The fifth and final one-day international between Bangladesh and the visiting Zimbabwe will be a day match instead of the previously scheduled day-night affair.   Cricket: Matthew after Marcus Matthew Hoggard took the first five South African wickets to give England a chance of winning the fourth Test at the Wanderers Stadium here on Monday.   Cricket: Afridi unlikely to go up Big-hitting Shahid Afridi, who set Pakistan's innings ablaze in their match against Australia, won't be moved up the batting order for Wednesday's triangular VB Series limited-overs clash with the West   Tennis: Federer, Serena breeze thru' World number one Roger Federer and women's favourite Serena Williams led the way into the Australian Open second round Monday as Spanish star Carlos Moya tumbled out in a shock defeat.   Cricket: England win fourth Test Seamer Matthew Hoggard took seven wickets for the first time in his career as England beat South Africa by 77 runs in a dramatic finale to the fourth Test at the Wanderers on Monday.   Football: MSC win tsunami charity in Tripura Mohammedan Sporting Club thrashed Tripura Eleven 4-0 in a charity football match at the Umakanta Stadium in Agartala, India yesterday.   Cricket: Spearman in the World XI squad Former New Zealand Test batsman Craig Spearman has been added to the World XI for the one-day series against the Black Caps beginning on January 22.   Cricket: ACC in venue dilemma Asian cricket chiefs were Monday exploring alternative venues for next month's one-day international for tsunami victims following the Indian government's silence on whether proceeds from the game would   Kuznetsova denies doping claim US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, one of three players at the centre of doping allegations, says she is not a drug cheat and is angry at the Belgian authorities who inadvertently pointed the finger   Volleyball: Pepsi volleyball Azad Sporting Club defeated Bridge Road 3-1 while Sunrise Sporting Club blanked Lenin Smrity Sangsad 3-0 in the Pepsi Volleyball League matches at the Gaibandha Stadium yesterday.   ERRATUM In our yesterday's lead picture caption it was inadvertently written that Khaled Mashud was taking a catch at the Maulana Bhasani National Stadium. It should have been at the Bangabandhu National Stadium.   Football: Eto'o bails Barca out Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o atoned for missing an early penalty by grabbing a late winner to give his side an agonising 1-0 win over 10-man Real Sociedad at the Nou Camp on Sunday.   Football: Zola makes Milan happy Juventus saw their lead at the top of Serie A cut to two points after they were held to a 1-1 draw at Cagliari and closest rivals AC Milan beat Udinese 3-1.   Football: Ferguson gets Everton a point Duncan Ferguson stepped off the bench to spark an Everton revival as they claimed a 1-1 draw at Middlesbrough in the Premier League on Sunday.   Football: Exeter miracle part two? Manchester United taste the extremes of English football this week when, four days after beating Liverpool at Anfield, they travel to Devon for their FA Cup third round replay with minor league Exeter   Football: Tiger Cup Singapore's Singapore beat Indonesia 2-1 on Sunday to win the Tiger Cup 5-2 on aggregate and crown themselves kings of south east Asia for the second time.   Football: A sad day in Valencia Valencia defender Marco Caneira withdrew from his side's Primera Liga game at Osasuna after his young daughter died on Sunday.   Football: FA bans mystery booter An unidentified player has been banned for six months by the Football Association (FA) after twice testing positive for cocaine use, according to UK Sport.   Football: South African star arrested Former South Africa World Cup hero Philemon Masinga was arrested at the weekend for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol. Metropolitan Govt conspires to export gas to India: 5 party Speakers at a rally yesterday demanded payment of salary and festival bonus of the employees and workers of all mills and factories before the Eid-ul-Azha.   Non-govt teachers, staff demand inclusion in new pay scale Non-government teachers and employees yesterday demanded their inclusion in the new national pay scale.   Campaign to reduce road, river accidents launched An awareness campaign aimed at reducing road and river accidents during the holy Eid-ul-Azha was launched yesterday.   Trial in 24-kg heroin haul case begins The trial of the sensational 24-kilogram heroin haul case began yesterday in a Sessions Judge's Court, Dhaka with the deposition of the then director general of Narcotics Control Directorate (DNC).   Death threat to journalist Maniruzzaman Noted journalist and columnist Maniruzzaman received a death threat from an unknown caller at his home yesterday.   No Eid reception at Bangabhaban The reception at the President's house on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha will not be held due to unavoidable circumstances. National Breakthrough in organic pest control The Bangladesh Agriculture University (BAU) has evolved environment friendly organic methods for treating seed and soil at negligible cost, which will help increase crop yield and reduce use of harmful   Foes in politics, friends while land grabbing They are political foes but together have grabbed a prime railway land, sparking protests by people in Bholaganj in Companiganj upazila.   Two buy freedom, one abducted in Kushtia College student Ziaul, abducted on January 10 and expatriate Kalu, abducted on January 13, bought their freedom on Sunday. In another incident, criminals abducted a rice mill owner on Sunday.   Alliance holds rally, procession to hail govt announcement The BNP-lead four party alliance organised a big rally and brought out a coloutful procession in the city on Monday to celebrate a government announcement upgrading the Brojo Mohan College (BM College)   Bid to abduct teenage girl foiled by mob: 21 held A bid to abduct a teenage girl was foiled by mob at Katiyer Vita village in Fulchhari upazila on Saturday. Police arrested 21 abductors and sent them to jail hajat.   Probe begins on 'corruption' by Rangpur Civil Surgeon An allegation of corruption against the Rangpur Civil Surgeon (CS) is being investigated.   BSF hands over abducted sudent rescued in India A Bangladeshi school student, abducted by an Indian gang, was rescued by BSF and handed over to BDR at a flag meeting held at Kacharipara on the no man's land on Sunday.   3 bombs recovered from Agailjhara barber shop Agailjhara police searched a locked barber shop and recovered three home made bombs Saturday night.   A life for a bidi Refusal to offer a bidi to a person has led to a bloody clash resulting in death of one person and injuries to two others at Shapmara village in Gobindaganj upazila on Saturday.   Jobo League leader among 3 held by Barisal Rab Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested three persons including a Jubo League leader from Rajpasha village in Shekherhut union in Jhalakati district Sunday nigh and recovered arms and ammunitions from their   Spurious Phensidyl kills one A drug addict died at Nunia village in Palashbari upazila following intake of spurious Phensidyl on Saturday. The dead victim is Jahangir Alam, manager of a bus counter. Point-Counterpoint Declaring Ahmadiyyas non-Muslim in Pakistan has serious repurcussion on civil liberty The famous Pakistani human rights lawyer and UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Belief, Asma Jehangir, during her recent visit to Dhaka, was interviewed by Inam Ahmed and Ashfaq Culture Ceramics with austere colours and shapes Everything at Halimul Islam Khokon's ongoing exhibition of ceramics and painting at Zainul Gallery is in beige, gray or burnt sienna. The colours and shapes are muted and subdued.   Wrong Number: An entertaining movie The premiere show of the much awaited feature film Wrong Number was held at the Balaka Cinema Hall on day before last.   "I would otherwise have been an airhostess"-- Dipa Dipa Khandaker, a talented TV actress, has also worked on a number of commercials. Mohuya, Meghe Dhaka Manush, Shwapnabhukh, Ami and Nil Phoring Ghash Phoring are her major works. General HC rule on govt, DCC The High Court yesterday issued a rule on the government and Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) asking why their interference with a nursery at Gulshan will not be declared illegal and why the DCC will notbe   Sylhet JCD activist beaten to death A minibus driver and his accomplices beat a JCD man to death on Sylhet-Jakiganj Road yesterday.   One to die, six get life term A court yesterday sentenced one person to death and six others life term for killing acting principal Syed Hafizuddin Ahmed of Badiul Alam College here four years ago.   Death of teacher sparks off violence in Bogra The death of a teacher due to alleged wrong treatment sparked off a violent protest by his students in the town yesterday.   Seminar on industrial, systems engineering A seminar on"Industrial and systems engineering: Bangladesh perspective in open market scenario" was held at Eastern University on January 16, says a press release.   Holcim donation for tsunami-hit people Holcim, the world's leading suppliers of cement, aggregates (gravel and sand), concrete and construction-related services, will donate three million Swiss francs for the tsunami-hit people of Sri Lanka,   'Reform faulty electoral system' Speakers at a rally yesterday demanded reform of the exiting electoral system terming it 'faulty'.   1,690 more held, 23 arms seized Police arrested 1,690 people, including nine identified criminals, on various charges from different parts of the country in the last 24 hours till 6.00am yesterday. International Abbas asks forces to prevent attacks New Palestinian President Mah-moud Abbas ordered security forces yesterday to prevent all attacks on Israel by militants who have defied his calls for calm, a cabinet minister said.   Politics, bureaucracy and fatigue hit tsunami aid effort Three weeks after one of the worst natural disasters in global memory, survivors of the Asian tsunamis grappled with bureaucracy and politicking Monday as the world's attention turned elsewhere.   Domestic, foreign policy challenges to haunt Bush President Bush will be confronted by strong domestic and foreign policy challenges as he begins a second term this week that will go a long way toward determining his place in the pantheon of American   US pulls back aid supply ships from Lanka The US yesterday pulled back two military supply ships deployed for tsunami-relief operations in Sri Lanka even as Canada vowed a long-term commitment of its troops to help the island get back on itsfeet.   Rice hearing to lay out US foreign policy The Bush administration begins to lay out its second term foreign policy agenda this week when Condoleezza Rice undergoes two days of hearings before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.   US not rushing to leave Iraq: Bush President Bush says the US military will pull out of Iraq "as quickly as possible," but he is not endorsing Secretary of State Colin Powell's statement that troops could begin returning home this year.   Underground trains collide in Bangkok: 100 injured Over 100 people were injured in rush-hour crash when an empty underground train collided with another crowded train parked at Thai Cultural Centre station in Bangkok at 9:20 am last morning, Transport   Purged Chinese leader Zhao Ziyang dies Zhao Ziyang, who was ousted as China's Communist Party leader after sympathising with the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests and became a symbol of the era's shattered hopes, died yesterdayafter   Second terms often marked by scandal Every two-term presidency since World War II has been tainted by scandal.   India to appoint body on Kashmir autonomy India said yesterday it would appoint a committee to examine the issue of granting disputed Indian Kashmir more regional autonomy, the United News of India agency reported. Editorial Editorial: Splurging on government vehicles OF late, misuse of government vehicles in utter disregard of the rules has been in the news.   Editorial: Vanishing trick with tickets HOMEBOUND people find themselves in great difficulty when scrambling for bus, train or launch tickets before any major festival.   Happy birthday to JU Jahangirnagar University (JU) started its functions on 12 January 1971.   China -South Asia economic interaction can be of great mutual benefits SOUTH Asia's potentials for forging and enhancing multi-faceted cooperation with its giant neighbour are enormous and if exploited, these can be of immense benefit for both sides. Letters to Editor Disaster forecasting My attention has been drawn to a Daily Star front-page news report captioned "Plan to link up with global disaster forecasting system" published on January 04.   Appointment of BGMEA administrator The news (DS 7.1.'05) that the government appointed an administrator to run the affairs of the BGMEA, until the election of its Executive Committee, has really worried me.   My window Have you ever thought about what view a window can offer you? Grab a chair and just sit for a while. My window offers me the world.   Tigers fight back Everybody was heartbroken when the Zimbabweans set us a huge target to save the Dhaka Test. But our openers are doing a great job right now as I watch the match live on television.   Dear readers We are going to have a new e-mail address for the Letters to the Editor page. Please send your letters to letters@thedailystar.