Letters

Trees Decimated

These days, cutting down trees have become a lucrative trade for some vested quarters in our country. Trees are essential if we are to maintain our ecological balance. We need forests and trees to save our country from flood and cyclone as well as the effects of climate change. But despite this, some criminals are chopping down trees relentlessly. In most cases this is done illegally, and with total disregard for conservation laws.

During the Eid holidays trees worth about Tk 20 lakh were plundered from Lawachhara Reserve Forest under Kamalganj upazila of Moulvibazar district. Only a few months ago, a group of influential people had as many as 15,000 keora and bain trees cut down in the Sitakunda region. Once again on 29th November, about 5,000 trees were felled across a half kilometer area of the forest belt at Sonachhari coast in Sitakunda. These are not isolated incidents. People in many other areas are also cutting down trees and decimating forests. Most of the time some political leaders and gangs are directly involved in destroying trees of the reserve forests. We know that Bangladesh will have to face the disastrous effects of climate change soon. Still, the administration remains silent in the face of such nefarious activities. Sometimes it is alleged that some government officials are also involved with these influential quarters.
Therefore, I would like to draw the attention of the government to take adequate steps to save our forests and trees from destruction, and take stern action against the tree plunderers.
Mohammed Jamal Uddin
313,Mohammedpur,Panchlish,Chittagong

 

****

Government Jobs

Government jobs are rare as rain in winter. Every young graduate craves a BCS job with some government cadre. It would not be an exaggeration to say it has just become even more lucrative due to the recent increase in salary of government officials. However there is a drawback. In our country, it is common knowledge that no job is possible without greasing the palm of high officials. For this reason, the really talented job seekers often cannot secure their position in the BCS cadres. Apart from this, there are various quotas, which mean people with inferior abilities get into good positions at the expense of genuinely talented candidates. As a result, the country loses many brilliant minds. This is a great loss and will surely harm us in the intensely competitive global environment.
Md. Zahidul Islam Zibon
Dept. Of English
International Islamic University Chittagong.

Honouring Shamsur Rahman

Recently Victory Day has been observed all over the country, which is a red-letter day for our nation. I've hardly ever seen the top tier of government officials and politicians visiting the grave of poet Shamsur Rahman. We can't deny the fact that he was one of the renowned poets of our country, who has been a great source of inspiration to all of us because of his magnificent poem “Shadhinota Tumi”, which to the best of my knowledge is the first poem on independence of our country. It is unfortunate that this great poet is not honoured on these auspicious occasions.
Md. Alim Uddin
Dept. of English
Shahjalal University of Science and Technology
Sylhet

Spiralling House Rent
Landlords increase house rent every year in Bangladesh -- it has become almost a tradition. During the first month of each year, the hapless tenants are given the dreaded notice of an increase in rent. The ruthless landlords give a deadline to tenants by which they will have to either pay an increased amount of money or leave the house. It is a bad practice that exists in most of the rented houses. Actually the owners are overly eager to make more money. The tenants are always worst sufferers of this bad practice. No one denies the right of landlords to maximise their profits, but it should be done in an orderly manner. In many cases the landlords don't paint the house regularly, and cannot ensure adequate supply of water for their tenants. But never mind these basic facilities, the rent will go up once again this month!
Md. Raihanul Azim
Dept. of English
International Islamic University Chittagong.

 

Drug Addiction
Being a third world country Bangladesh faces numerous chilling problems. For the last few years ''Drug Addiction'' has taken ominous shape throughout the country. It is really a matter of great sorrow that the younger generation who are supposed to take the helm of the country is falling victim to drug addiction. But our surprise knows no bounds when we hear that students of medical colleges are involved in these antisocial activities. A few days ago it was reported in a prominent daily that many doctors of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University are addicted to different sorts of drugs. So if this is the nature of our doctors then what can the common people expect? Doctors are the only hope and a great source of comfort for many terminally ill patients. But if physicians are addicted to drugs, it is a sad aspect of our society which is not only punishable but also an indication of moral decay.
Hussein Shahadat
Department Of English
University Of Dhaka

 

---

Submission Guideline:

Letters to the Editor, Star Diary and Write to Mita, with the writer's name and address, should be within 200 words. All articles should be within 1,200 words. A cover letter is not necessary, but every write-up should include the writer's name, phone number and email address (if any). While The Star welcomes unsolicited articles and photographs, it cannot accept the responsibility of their loss or damage. The Star does not return unsolicited articles and photos. Response time for unsolicited write-ups ranges from three weeks to two months. All articles submitted are subject to editing for reasons of space and clarity.
All materials should be sent to: The Star magazine, 19 Karwan Bazar, Dhaka-1215, Fax: 880-2-8125155 or emailed to: <[email protected]>
It is recommended that those submitting work for the first time to The Star take a look at a sample copy beforehand. Our website is: http://www.thedailystar.net/magazine

 

Copyright (R) thedailystar.net 2010