FRUIT and vegetable growers, given their limited staying power with perishables, are among the hardest-hit in the economy .The  blockade and shut-downs over a long period have put the farmers in double jeopardy. In the first place, gluts of   perishable  produces have been left to wither in the fields  or just dumped to rot. As it is, the farmers have had to resort to distress sales of whatever they could manage to dispose of locally. In addition to the blow,...

WHAT is now an established fact is that Bangladesh is a major supplier of labour in international markets. However, the country provides workers in the lower value segment of overseas labour market. Similarly, as the country moves away from agriculture and towards industry, the sheer dearth of skilled manpower has become all too apparent. Going by what has been reported in media, the garments sector alone employs thousands of expatriate 'white collar' employees since our manpower lacks adequate technical...

SO far BNP's political programme has cost 113 lives. Sixty of them were victims of arson attacks on buses and public transport. More than 1,200 vehicles have been destroyed by fire or damaged by miscreants. One hundred thirty people are writhing in agony in the burn units. And on Sunday only, 43 vehicles were damaged or put on fire. To compound matters, political clashes and traffic accidents, including bullet riddled bodies, number 17. The crossfire deaths and public beatings,...

WITHIN less than a week of Avijit Roy's murder, we reiterate our call for a focused investigation such that Avjit's killers and purported masterminds of the extremist outfit Ansar Bangla 7, which claimed responsibility for the attack, can be brought to justice without delay. If we cannot ensure justice against the dark forces, our values of freedom, tolerance and secularism will suffer a major blow. The Rab arrest of Farabi Shafiur Rahman, who had instigated death threats against Avijit, is...

THE regularity with which the law enforcing agencies have been discovering dens of the extremist groups along with large quantity of weapons, incendiary and explosive materials is worrying. But one must give plaudits to the police for their successes in this regard. We hope the competence with which law enforcers are unearthing the dens of the extremists will eventually deter spread of their tentacles. The fact that extremists groups continue to remain active in the country cannot be lost on the...

WE may feel encouraged by the upward trend in social indicators that give credence that women are much better off than they ever were in terms of maternal mortality, health, nutrition and even as far as job opportunities are concerned. But there is a glaring absence of women in decision making roles across all professions. This is where the challenge of gender equity really lies. A roundtable organized by Prothom Alo and UNFPA recently, has highlighted the need for a...

With the AL and BNP replying to UN Secretary General Ban Ki- moon's  letter urging them to sit for dialogue ,all we  find is an emphatic reiteration of the hard positions of the respective political parties .  The BNP's 'readiness' to sit for talks will lack conviction   so long  it continues with its  mindless   oborodh and hartals . And, the government's 'repression'and its refusal 'to sit with terrorists'   add to the hiatus . Thus, there   appears to be a deficit...

After every major disaster in the country, probe committees are formed to assuage the public that a fair investigation would be conducted and perpetrators identified and brought to justice in a timely manner. It is unfortunate, however, that most of these probe committee findings do not reach public ears; in an overwhelming number of cases, the investigation, if completed at all, is conducted in a lackluster, insincere manner, with many reports outlining vague findings where the real culprits remain...

WE condemn the brutal murder of writer and blogger Avijit Roy and attack on his wife, Rafida Islam Banna, in no uncertain terms. The savage act, hauntingly similar to the hacking of critical thinker and writer Humayun Azad, took place right in front of the Ekushey Book Fair, in clear view of law enforcers and other people. According to media reports, the writer, known for his staunch support of secularism and critique of religious fundamentalism in the country, was threatened...

WITH nearly two months of ongoing hartal and oborodh, the academic calendar for millions of children continues to be adversely affected. Amid security concerns that have led attendance rates nearly all over the country to plummet, students, parents and teachers find themselves in a predicament as to how to maintain a regular schedule. This unending disruption of studies is extremely disconcerting for obvious reasons; it also begs the question, is education for our children held in any esteem at...