Prior to this we had English side by side with Bangla in official correspondence in the government offices. Many of the lectures in colleges and universities were also conducted in English. Even speeches in the parliament were also delivered in English. In fact, English was our official language for about two hundred years. But all on a sudden, English was discarded although it is the number one international language. Educational institutions stopped using English as a medium of instruction. It became possible for students to pursue higher studies avoiding English and at the same time use of English in official correspondence was discontinued.

We were used to Sunday as the weekly holiday. But Friday was made weekly holiday which was not the case even when we were part of Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The then government of Bangladesh may have gained some popularity by these changes but these actions may have caused considerable damage to the progress and development of the nation as far as interaction with outside world is concerned.

Presently, command over English of a typical graduate or post graduate student is simply poor, to say the least. Before mid-eighties an average Bangladeshi student's command over English was not too bad. Every village high school had a good English teacher. The teacher may not have been good in spoken English. But definitely he was good in other aspects like grammar, translation etc. Earlier an average student would come from a village school and have little difficulty in following English lectures on various subjects in colleges and universities. But as soon as it became possible to pursue higher studies avoiding English, importance of English as well as English teacher was reduced to a minimum. The system broke down and ultimately most of the schools lost their efficient English teachers. It may take years before such teachers can be made available again in a village high schools. In government offices officers and clerks who were once quite fluent in writing notes in English could no longer write those in English.

Incidentally, countries around us like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal etc never rejected the English language. They continued to use English side by side with their own state mother languages. We couldn't possibly claim to be more patriotic than them.

Perhaps we are extremely emotional and sometimes get carried away easily by something without considering its pros and cons. In the interest of speedy development of the nation, we should perhaps immediately begin using English in official correspondence and also make English compulsory for higher studies.

We are a Muslim majority nation and as such declaring Friday as weekly holiday would be a popular decision. But popular decisions are not always beneficial to a nation. Pakistan and Malaysia had taken similar decisions perhaps on the same ground and declared Friday as weekly holiday. But they found out soon enough that it was not in the greatest interest of their respective nations. They have since reverted back to Sunday as weekly holiday. Recently, the pay commission is reported to have recommended two weekly holidays i.e. Saturday and Sunday. We must seriously consider the recommendation and at least Sunday should be made weekly holiday, if not both Saturday and Sunday. Leading businessmen while visiting the prime minister also requested her to seriously consider Sunday as weekend.

We cannot progress in isolation shunning contacts with outside world. If we are to keep up with latest technological advancements and carry on with trade and commerce efficiently with rest of the world, we have no other option but to be proficient in the number one international language -- English. In the same way following the logic as that of Malaysia and Pakistan we must revert back to Sunday as the weekly holiday.

The present government is enjoying two thirds majority in the parliament. Perhaps this is a historic opportunity for the government to take necessary to declare Sunday as weekly holiday and English as the second language.