SECOND EDITION

PAGE 32First MERS case con� rmed in Thailand

PAGE 10Key arrest in India nun rape case

PAGE 8Malaysian navy shadows tanker

PAGE 5Rony � red � ve shots, his aides tell court

PAGE 6Jackfruit growers in losses for extortion

GAS MASTER PLAN IN WORKS PAGE 3

MYANMAR ENVOY SUMMONED OVER BORDER SHOOTING PAGE 32

KHALEDA APPEARS BEFORE COURT IN GRAFT CASES PAGE 4

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015 | Ashar 5, 1421, Ramadan 1, 1436 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 67 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages plus 24-page Weekend | Price: Tk10

SEHRI & IFTAR TIME

For Barisal, deduct one minute, and for Sylhet and Chittagong deduct six minutes; for Khulna add four minutes, for Rangpur � ve minutes, and for Rajshahi seven minutes.

Day Sehri IftarRamadan 1/June 19 – 6.52pmRamadan 2/June 20 3.38am 6.52pm

n Minhaz Uddin Khan

If the Bangladesh openers had set the tone earlier in the day, then debutant Musta� zur Rahman did just what his skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza asked him to do as India su� ered a 79-run defeat in the � rst of three ODIs at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.

The match was as good as over even before the last 10 overs of India’s chase. India’s tail-enders – surrounded by the close-in � elders, riled up by the home fans and pressurised by the bowlers – struggled to hold on.

The likes of Umesh Yadav and Mohit Shar-ma only delayed the inevitable as the visitors were bundled out for 228 with Musta� z play-ing a starring role with the leather, bagging his maiden � ve-for in his very � rst ODI.

Yesterday’s victory was the Tigers’ ninth home win in a row as they continued their recent progress in 50-over cricket. To add to PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Welcome to the jungle

Dope muggers on move as another Eid approachesn Mohammad Jamil Khan

Just like the previous years, notorious “ogyan parties” have started becoming active in the capital city with Eid-ul-Fitr, the biggest reli-gious festival in the country, up ahead.

These gangs of muggers got the name be-cause they make people unconscious with sedatives at public places or crowded trans-ports and take away all their belongings. Og-yan in Bangla means unconscious and party is used to denote gangs.

This past week – the last before the month of Ramadan starts – there has already been a mini spike in the number of victims; at least that is what the Dhaka Medical College Hospi-tal (DMCH) patient register suggests.

In the week ending today, at least seven people got admitted to the DMCH. Even in the

preceding few weeks, the average number of victims of this crime was less than three.

Last year, as many as 450 people, all ogy-an party victims, took treatment at the DMCH during the month of Ramadan. Two of them died there later.

One of the deceased was a college student named Md Shohagh, 19, who came to visit his brother’s house in the capital’s Golapbagh area during Ramadan.

According to the police’s Detective Branch (DB), these gangs wait throughout the year to prey on people who come to the capital city to make a few extra bucks in the Ramadan surge in economic activities. These muggers are mainly active in and around the train, bus and launch terminals through which the sea-sonal migration in� ux takes place.

PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Niko graft caseto continuen Ashif Islam Shaon

The High Court yesterday cleared the way for trying BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia in the Niko graft case, by lifting an earlier stay order as well as rejecting a petition by her chal-lenging the legality of the case.

The bench of of Justice MD Nuruzzaman and Justice Za-far Ahmed also directed Khaleda to surrender before a lower court within two months of releasing the full text of the High Court order. The High Court also asked the lower court con-cerned to consider granting bail to the BNP chief if she sur-renders.

Khaleda’s lawyer AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon said they would talk to Khaleda about the next legal step, and appeal with the Supreme Court against the order.

On April 2, a petition was � led seeking the High Court’s de-cision on whether the proceedings would continue in the Niko graft case.

PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

Rookie pacer leads Tigers to crushing win against India

Morning shows the day. If his very � rst delivery in 50-over cricket was anything to go by, then Musta� zur Rahman had a treat in store for us yesterday in the � rst ODI against India at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. The left-armer trapped Rohit Sharma in front, only to be turned down by the umpire. The youngster, however, was not down-hearted, and proceeded to help himself to a majestic � ve-wicket haul on his debut MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Dope muggers on moveThey operate in teams of four to � ve. They target a prey, mostly people who live out-side Dhaka, one of the members get friendly with him or her, o� ers strong sedative-mixed food and mugs all belongings when the vic-tim falls unconscious. One or two mem-bers of an ogyan party stay standby to tack-le any untoward situations that may arise.

DB says that at present at least 10 such mug-ging gangs – each comprising 25-30 members – are active in the capital city and they have all bolstered their activities as Eid approaches.

Police say that they can take action against only a handful of these gangs as most cases of

mugging remain unreported.The two deaths reported last year is unusual

but health professionals say that an attack may come with long term physical consequences.

Prof Billal Hossain of the DMCH medicine unit said: “By studying victims, we have seen that heavy dosage of sedative a� ects kidney and liver. If someone feels unwell after falling victim to an ogyan party, they should imme-diately go to a nearby hospital instead of wast-ing time in the streets.”

Contacted, AKM Shahidul Haque, inspec-tor general of police (IGP), told the Dhaka Tribune: “Drives are on and we have already

arrested several members of these mugger gangs. But the consciousness must come from people. They should not eat anything given by strangers and stay alert at crowded places.”

On Wednesday night, detectives nabbed 21 members of an ogyan party at di� erent places in the city and seized a large amount of sed-ative tablets from their possessions including Dormicum, Milam, and Ativan.

A mobile court of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) jailed the muggers to di� erent prison terms raging from six months to two years, said DB Deputy Commissioner Sajjadur Rahman.

While talking to media yesterday, he also said

that these muggers had been picked up from the capital’s Shahbagh, Narayanganj-Jatrabari road, Dhaka University and the High Court areas.

Sajjadur told the Dhaka Tribune: “We have seen in the past that these muggers come out and dope people again after securing bail from courts. This year, we have deployed mobile courts to give them punishment immediately so that they can-not come out and commit the same crime again.”

Contacted, Abdul Mazid, OC of Govern-ment Railway Police, told the Dhaka Tribune that at least 250 of their personnel will oper-ate in uniforms and plainclothes at the train stations to stop the ogyan parties. l

Niko graft caseto continueOn December 9, 2007, the Anti-Corruption Commission � led the graft case with Tejgaon police station, accusing Khaleda and several others of abusing power to award a gas ex-ploration and extraction deal to Canadian company Niko during her time in o� ce as the prime minister.

The other accused in the case were – former law minister Moudud Ahmed, former state minister for energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former acting energy secretary Khandaker Shahidul Islam and Kashem Sharif, vice-pres-ident (South Asia) of Niko Resources Bangla-desh Ltd.

The charge sheet in the case was submitted by the ACC in May 2008 against Khaleda and 10 others. Later in July, the High Court stayed the case and directed the ACC and the govern-ment to explain why the initiation and pro-ceedings of the case should not be declared illegal.

Recently this year, the ACC again moved to revive the Niko corruption case and anew High Court bench was assigned to dis-pose of it. n

New bus lines for Dhaka, Thimphu, Kathmandu n Shohel Mamun

Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan have agreed to launch three new bus services among them under the BBIN motor vehicles agreement, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said.

The agreement was signed on June 15 in Thimphu, Bhutan, by the transport ministers of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal.

After the signing, Quader met Bhutan’s Infor-mation and Communications Minister Lyonpo DN Dhungyel and they reached a decision to launch two bus services between Dhaka and Thimphu, the � rst of its kind between the two countries.

Quader also met Nepal’s Physical Infra-structure and Transport Minister Bimalendra Nidhi and the two decided to launch a Dha-ka-Kathmandu bus service.

Quader yesterday told reporters at the Sec-retariat that initial decision to launch three trans-border bus services had been made.

Sources said two of the three new bus routes are Dhaka-Thimphu via India’s Joy-

gong and Bhutan’s Phuesoreng, which will pass through Burimari border, and Dha-ka-Thimphu via India’s Guwahati and Bhu-tan’s Samdrup Jongkhar, which will pass through Tamabil border in Sylhet.

The other route is Dhaka-Kathmandu via In-dia’s Panitanki and Nepal’s Kakarbhitta. It will pass through Bangladesh’s Banglabandha border.

Road Transport and Bridges Ministry’s Joint Secretary Chandan Kumar Dey said bilat-eral and trilateral protocols would be needed before launching the new bus services. He also said valid documents would be needed for ve-hicles to enter from one country to another.

Quader earlier said vehicles crossing the BBIN countries must have insurance cover-age and authorised o� cials can search those. “They will not be allowed to take passengers while in another country during the journey.”

At present, Bangladesh and India have a bi-lateral arrangement on passenger movement but Bangladeshi vehicles can enter Nepal or Bhutan through India and vice versa once the new agreement takes e� ect. l

PM urges leaders, activists to strengthen partyn Tribune Report

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged leaders and activists to work hard to strengthen the party at every tier and project the govern-ment’s tremendous success before the coun-trymen.

“Strengthening the party at every tier is necessary. We have already formed teams to this end. So I would like to tell you to give proper attention so that the party is built or-ganisationally,” she said while exchanging views with leaders and workers of Sylhet dis-trict and city units of the Awami League at MAG Osmani International Airport during a stopover.

The premier also said the Awami League did politics for the welfare of the nation’s peo-ple and their development while the BNP be-lieved in destruction.

Hasina, also the president of the Awami League, made the one-hour stopover on her way to Dhaka from London yesterday morning.

The premier said it had become possible for her to stop over at Sylhet airport as the Awami League government was in power

and established the airport which was the long-cherished desire of Sylhet residents.

With city Awami League President and for-mer mayor Badaruddin Ahmad Kamran in the chair, the function was addressed by Sylhet District Unit Vice-President and sadar upazila Chairman Ashfaq Ahmed and General Secre-tary Sha� qur Rahman Chowdhury and city unit General Secretary Asaduddin Ahmed.

“We are going through many obstacles as we completed the trial of the killers of Bang-abandhu and are holding the trial of the war criminals,” she said.

Hasina said the aim of her government was to free the nation from stigma by � nishing the trial of the war criminals who committed genocide in 1971. The prime minister said the country was moving fast towards economic prosperity and there is huge contribution of expatriate Bangladeshis to this end.

Pointing out the vehicular movement agree-ment between Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Bhu-tan, she said: “Regional connectivity will con-tribute to our economy and expand trade and business with other countries of the region.” l

Welcome to the jungleBangladesh’s joy, yesterday’s win took them one step closer to qualifying for the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy.

One victory in their next � ve ODIs against India and South Africa will see the Tigers seal their maiden birth in the eight-team tourna-ment’s eighth edition.

Excitement. Elation. These were some of the emotions experienced by the Bangla-desh cricketers yesterday as they faced their sub-continent rival for the � rst time since their controversial 2015 ICC World Cup quar-ter-� nal. That particular clash at Melbourne Cricket Ground forced the Tigers to garner some bitter memories.

The Bangladesh cricketers, of course, did not say anything on record but it was obvi-ous that they were indeed holding a grudge against the Indians. Revenge is a dish best served cold and thanks to Musta� z, the Tigers exacted sweet vengeance yesterday.

Fast bowler Taskin Ahmed initiated the � rst breakthrough after the Indian openers registered a 95-run partnership. First, Taskin dismissed Shikhar Dhawan, inducing an edge o� the left-hander on its way to Mush� qur Rahim. The youngster’s piece de resistance

however, came a few moments later when Vi-rat Kohli departed in a similar fashion.

Musta� z then began his demolition act as the visitors found themselves reeling at 128/5 from the relatively handsome position of 95/0. The left-armer accounted for the impor-tant wickets of Rohit Sharma and middle-or-der mainstay Ajinkya Rahane.

The decision to play four seamers paid o� in some style as the pace bowling department accumulated eight wickets between them. Such was the dominance of the Bangladesh pacemen that ace all-rounder Shakib al Hasan had to wait till the 25th over before he was handed the ball. Shakib vindicated Mashrafe’s decision by taking the key wicket of India skipper MS Dhoni.

In the meantime, Mush� q, who grassed two Dhawan opportunities earlier, was having a ball at the middle. In total, the diminutive wicket-keeper grasped � ve catches to equal Khaled Mashud’s record for the most catches by a Bangladesh stumper in a ODI.

Musta� z and Mashrafe then cleaned up the tail. Musta� z, who bagged magical bowling � gures of 5/50, had the golden opportunity to equal Jerome Taylor’s record for the high-

est number of wickets on ODI debut. Musta� z though will not mind as he became the sec-ond Bangladesh cricketer, after Taskin, to take � ve wickets on debut.

Earlier, the determination of the Tigers was palpable right from the onset as the two openers, Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar, got o� to a � ery start. Upon winning the toss, Mashrafe had no qualms deciding to bat � rst as the home side posted 307-allout in 49.4 overs, their highest total against their subcon-tinent rival.

The opening duo enabled the home side to 100 runs in just 70 balls but the start of yester-day’s show was relatively sedate. Both Tamim and Soumya ensured of reading the condi-tions � rst before embarking on their stroke-� lled association.

The opening partnership were almost neck-and-neck in terms of scoring. If Tamim bludg-eoned a boundary, Soumya followed suit. If Tamim hammered a six, Soumya did the same. By the time Soumya departed, Bangladesh posted 102 in 13.4 overs at a brisk run rate of 7.46 per over. Shakib, Sabbir Rahman, Nasir Hossain and Mashrafe struck some late cameos to propel the Tigers past the 300-run mark. l

NEWS2DT

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TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Gas master plan in worksn Aminur Rahman Rasel

The government is preparing a new 25-year gas sector master plan with focus on demand-sup-ply projections and economic and � nancial im-pacts of lique� ed natural gas imports.

The existing master plan, prepared by UK-based Wood Mackenzie in 2006, is being re-vised and its time horizon extended from 2025 to 2041. The original plan was prepared under a Pertobangla project funded by the World Bank.

“The WB advised Petrobangla to update its master plan at a recent meeting between with Petrobangla o� cials,” a director of state-owned Petrobangla told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

He said the Power Cell under the Power Division would � nalise a new power system master plan with � nancial and technical as-sistance from Jica. The WB suggested that Petrobangla should follow the plan and as-sured the government that it would � nance the new gas sector master plan, he said.

He also said natural gas is the principal source of commercial energy accounting for 72% of the aggregate supply. Driven by rapid economic growth, Bangladesh’s demand for energy is growing rapidly, he added.

The objective of the new master plan is to

prioritise infrastructure development with a focus on gas demand-supply projections, optimising oil and gas exploration to enhance reserve and optimising � eld development and depletion programs to meet growing demand.

It will also focus on optimising � ow pat-terns from various gas � elds to demand centres using the existing infrastructure, op-timising the expansion of gas supplies and transmission infrastructure in the medium and long term and assessing the economic and � nancial impact of importing LNG to sup-plement locally produced natural gas.

The governance of the gas sector falls un-der the Energy and Mineral Resources Di-vision and operations are conducted by the Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation, better known as Petrobangla. Petrobangla conducts its activities through 13 state-owned operating companies.

The number of discovered gas � elds in the country is 26. The total reserve of recoverable gas – meaning both proven and probable gas reserves – was 27.12 trillion cubic feet in Jan-uary 2015.

Presently, 20 gas � elds are in operation and produce, in aggregate, about 2,700 million cu-bic feet per day of gas. l

Zafrullah faces arrest warrant n Ashif Islam Shaon

The International Crimes Tribunal 2 yesterday issued warrant of arrest against Gonoshast-haya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury for not paying a Tk5,000 � ne in conviction of contempt of court. Tribunal acting depu-ty registrar Aftabuzzaman said: “In the court

order of June 10, Zafrullah was asked to sub-mit the � ne by Wednesday. The tribunal has issued the warrant as the date expired.”

On June 16, the Supreme Court stayed un-til July 5 the tribunal’s verdict that � ned free-dom � ghter Zafrullah for his statement on the conviction of Dhaka-based British journalist David Bergman. l

NEWS4DTFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Khaleda appears before court in graft casesn Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday ap-peared before a Dhaka court in Zia Orphanage Trust and Zia Charitable Trust cases � led by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Khaleda, also former prime minister, ap-peared before the makeshift court at Bakshi-bazar around 10:30am amid tight security.

At the beginning of the hearing Khaleda’s counsels submitted two petitions seeking ad-journment of yesterday’s trial proceedings.

One of the two petitions said Khaleda had submitted a writ petition with the High Court for scrapping of the complainant’s deposition in Zia Orphanage Trust graft case which is now pending.

Khaleda’s counsel, in the other petition, sought adjournment of Zia Charitable Trust case mentioning that they were not prepared for cross-examination.

During the hearing, defense counsel Khandker Mahbub Hossain said the case was � led out of political vendetta.

“Had the judiciary system been independ-ent in the country the case would have been quashed as soon as the it \began,” he said.

Another defense counsel AM Mahbub Ud-din Khokon said the media was terming the cases ‘graft case’. He appealed to the court to warn the media not to label it as a corruption case.

Opposing the adjournment pleas, ACC Public Prosecutor Mosharraf Hossain Kajol

told the court that there was no legal bar to starting recording deposition and cross-ex-amination in the two cases.

After the hearing of both sides Judge Abu Ahmed Jomadar of the Special Judge Court-3 granted the � rst petition but rejected the sec-ond plea and directed the defense counsels to start cross-examination in Charitable Trust Case.

On behalf of Khaleda, Counsel Khandakar Mahbub Hossain cross-examined ACC Deputy Director Harun-ur-Rashid who completed his testimony as the plainti� in Zia Charitable Trust case in presence of Khaleda Zia on May 25.

Following the request of the defense, the court adjourned trial proceedings till July 23 after recording partial cross-examination of the plainti� in the case.

In 2009, the ACC � led the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case against Khaleda, her son Tari-que Rahman and four others for embezzle-ment of over Tk2.1 crore by forming a “fake” trust which existed only on paper.

The anti-graft watchdog � led another case in 2011, accusing four persons, including Khaleda Zia, of abusing power in setting up Zia Charitable Trust.

The other accused are Ziaur Rahman’s nephew Mominur Rahman, Khaleda’s former principal secretary Kamal Uddin Siddiqui, BNP former lawmaker Kazi Salimul Haque Kamal and businessman Sharfuddin Ahmed, Harris Chowdhury, Ziaul Islam Munna, and Monirul Islam Khan. l

Jaago project awarded second most innovative at GDN summitn Tribune Report

Jaago’s development project was awarded the second most innovative by Government of Ja-pan at the 16th Global Development Network conference held in Morocco from June 11-13.

This year GDN received 268 project pro-posals from 57 countries. After four rounds of competition, Jaago Foundation’s project “Solarising Online Schools” was awarded the second position for the Japanese Award for “Most Innovative Development Project”.

On behalf of JAAGO, Founder Korvi Rak-

shand received the award from Ichiro Tambo, Director, JICA and Pierre Jacquet, President, GDN in Casablanca, Morocco on June 13.

After receiving the award, Korvi Rakshand said: “This has opened a lot of doors for us with opportunities and we look forward to strengthen the partnership with GDN further for future development.”

The Jaago project proposes use of solar en-ergy to meet the electricity requirements of rural students who are being reached out to by quali� ed teachers from urban areas through the use of the internet and technology.

ACC approves charge sheet against BNP’s Annien Adil Sakhawat

The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday approved a charge sheet against former BNP lawmaker Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annie for his alleged involvement in amassing illegal wealth worth Tk1.23 crore.

Annie, also the BNP students’ a� airs sec-retary, hid information worth Tk13.13 lakh in his wealth statement submitted to the ACC, its Public Relation O� cer Pranab Kumar Bhat-tacharya said. Earlier in the day, the anti-graft

body cleared the charges.The ACC � led the case against Annie with

Ramna police on October 9 last year for accu-mulating wealth worth Tk1.4 crore beyond his known source of income. After the investiga-tion, the amount of illegal wealth came down by Tk18 lakh.

An ACC o� cial said Annie had concealed information about the registration of a piece of land for Tk3.13 lakh and a donation of Tk10 lakh to a school in Lakshmipur. The inquiry against Annie began on January 29 last year. l

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia waves at supporters after arriving at a makeshift court in Dhaka’s Bakshibazar yesterday to appear in two graft cases MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

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TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Rony � red � ve shots, his aides tell courtn Tribune Report

Two more friends of Bakhtiar Alam Rony, son of Awami League lawmaker Pinu Khan, yes-terday told a Dhaka court that Rony had � red � ve bullets at New Eskaton early on April 14 that killed two persons.

Tiger Kamal and Md Jahangir Hossain, who were on the Prado jeep during the incident, told the court that Rony had been under the in� uence of alcohol when they were going to Dhanmondi from Moghbazar.

Rony was annoyed with the tailback creat-ed in front of the road near Dilu Road around 1:45am, ahead of Pohela Boishakh, and � red � ve shots from the jeep indiscriminately,they said.

Metropolitan magistrate Md Nuru Miah re-corded their statements.

Kamal Mahmood, another friend of Rony, gave judicial statement in the case on Wednesday.

Rony’s driver Imran Fakir made confes-sional statement on June 1. Rony was arrested based on his information and later taken into

police custody for interrogation.Rickshaw-puller Abdul Hakim died on the

spot while and auto-rickshaw driver Yakub Sikder succumbed to his injuries at Dhaka Medical College on April 23.

Hakim’s mother Monowara Begum � led the murder case with Ramna police onApril 15.

Scrap licenceA Supreme Court lawyer yesterday sent a le-gal notice to the home secretary and the dep-uty commissioner of Dhaka to cancel licence of Rony’s � rearm.

Yunus Ali Akond sent the notice asking the respondents to explain under what authority they had issued the licence to Rony. The law-yer also urged them to pay compensation to the victims’ family members within 24 hours.

“I will � le a writ petition with the High Court if the respondents fail to meet the de-mands,” he told reporters.

Bakhtiar obtained the licence in March 2010 from the Dhaka District Administration on grounds of personal security. l

‘Rapist’ ASI placed on remandn Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

A Dhaka court yesterday placed Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Kalimur Rahman on a 3-day remand in a case � led over the gang-rape of a fe-male police constable in the capital on June 10.

Metropolitan Magistrate Meher Nigar Such-ona passed the order after DB inspector Alam Miah produced him before the court seeking a 10-day remand. On Wednesday, DB police arrested Kalimur Rahman from Kolatoli area in Cox’s Bazar, six days after he went into hiding.

The female constable of Turag police sta-tion was allegedly gang-raped by her ex-hus-band ASI Kalimur of the Special Security and Protection Battalion and his accomplices at Khilgaon in Dhaka on June 10.

The 25-year-old woman went to visit her three-year-old daughter at his Khilgaon resi-dence on that day.

A forensic test conducted at Dhaka Medi-cal College Hospital found evidence of sexual intercourse, but it could not con� rm whether she was gang-raped or not. l

New faces picked to lead DU BCL n DU Correspondent

Abid Al Hasan and Motahar Hossain Prince have been made president and general sec-retary respectively of Dhaka University unit Bangladesh Chhatra League.

The announcement over the new faces for the ruling Awami League’s student wing ap-peared yesterday afternoon.

BCL central committee General Secretary Siddique Nazmul Alam con� rmed it to the Dhaka Tribune.

On June 11, the council of DU unit BCL was held at Aparajeyo Bangla on the campus to se-lect the future leaders for the unit.

Abid, hailing from Barisal, was sports sec-retary of BCL central committee while Mota-har, from Bagerhat, was general secretary of Zia hall unit BCL of DU.

The duo will take charge from existing president Mehedi Hasan and general secre-tary Omar Sharif. l

‘Panam to be made as attractive tourist spot’n BSS

Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon yesterday said the government took a mega project to turn Panam city of Sonargaon, the capital of ancient Bengal, into an attractive tourist spot.

“Considering ancient value, the Panam city is an important tourist product of Bangla-desh. But only for marketing failure and lack of tourism friendly infrastructure, we failed to utilize potentiality of Panam city,” he said.

The minister made the remarks when ex-changing views with the o� cials of local ad-ministration after visiting the Panam city at Sonargaon. l

Probe report � led against 12 war crimes suspectsn Tribune Report

War crimes investigators yesterday submitted their probe report on 12 alleged war criminals from Jessore, who had been under the radar since November 2013.

Investigation O� cer Abdur Razzak Khan submitted the 42-page report, with � ndings on ex-BNP and Jamaat lawmaker Shakhawat Hossain and 11 others, to the chief prosecu-tor’s o� ce in the morning.

As part of their probe, investigators report-edly found that the accused men were in-volved in killing two persons, raping one, and torturing two others in Keshabpur of Jessore during the Liberation War in 1971.

“If the probe is satisfactory, we will submit formal charges against them with the tribu-nal,” said Prosecutor Zead Al Malum.

Of the 12 alleged war criminals, four, in-cluding Shakhawat have been arrested so far.

Law enforcers arrested 61-year-old Shakha-wat, who is now involved in Jatiya Party’s pol-itics, from his Uttar Khan house on November 29 last year.

According to the investigation agency, Shakhawat, who was reportedly a central committee member of Islami Chhatra Sang-ha in 1971, acted as a razakar commander at Chingri Bazar during the war.

Three others were arrested on May 12 this year; they are Billal Hossain Biswas, 75, of Nehalpur village, Akram Hossain, 59, of Bh-alukghar Mollapara and Ajihar Morol, 64, of Chingra village.

The suspects on the run are: Ibrahim Hos-sain of Nehalpur, Sheikh Md Mujibur Rahman and Kazi Ohidul Islam of Shekhpura, Aziz Sardar of Mominpur, Aziz Sardar of Boga, Lut-far Morol of Porchakra, Abdul Khaleq Morol of Altapol and Moshiar Rahman of Chingra could not be arrested. l

Muhith: Pay scale to take e� ect from Julyn Tribune Report

Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith yesterday said the government would � nalise pay hikes by July but the increase in the pay of the public servants would be counted from the � rst day of the next � scal year.

“We need a month to work out the imple-mentation of the new pay scale because it in-volves calculations of a huge allowance,” he told reporters after a meeting with Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers Associa-tion leaders.

“I try to solve pay scale problems whenev-

er a case comes to me,” said Muhith. “We want to rationalise the huge amount of

allowances paid to public servants, who view the money as one of their rights,” he said.

Muhith ruled out the demand for a separate pay scale for public university teachers, saying such a plan involves a range of problems.

“We will decide on this after consulting with the prime minister,” he said.

The Awami League in its 2008 election manifesto promised to introduce a separate pay scale for teachers.

The � nance minister also said there will be a reduction in the 20 kinds of allowances that

Bangladesh Bank employees are currently en-titled to.

“Government employees are now main-ly receiving allowances in four categories - house rent, education, conveyance and healthcare - but other allowances will be cut.

“We once tried to reduce the grades to 16 from the existing 20 but it is not possible be-cause of some legal issues,” he said.

“I hope the 8th national pay commission will be the last temporary pay scale commis-sion but I have no idea how a permanent pay commission will function,” added the � nance minister. l

A consumer buys eggplants, an essential ingredient for an iftar delicacy, at Hatirpool kitchen market yesterday. Vendors sold eggplants at Tk80-100 at most city kitchen markets yesterday, ignoring the daily o� cial price lists set by the Dhaka South City Corporation. The authorities � xed eggplant’s price at Tk50-60 per kilogram as mentioned on a board right behind this shop RAJIB DHAR

NEWS6DTFIRDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Equal allowance demanded for freedom � ghtersn Our Correspondent, Tangail

Freedom Fighters (FF) of the district yester-day blocked the Dhaka-Tangail-Bangabandhu Bridge Highway demanding equal monthly allowance for freedom � ghters.

Khandakar Jahurul Haque Dipti, com-mander of the district unit of Muktijoddha Sangsad led the hour-long programme partic-ipated by the freedom � ghters coming from several areas.

Later, a discussion was held at Nirala Mor near Shahid Minar where upazila level FF commanders spoke.

They said government had proposed Tk10,000 as the monthly allowance for the

freedom � ghters above 65 years of age, which was double the existing amount, in the budget for the 2015-16 � scal.

They alleged if government could not a� ord it, they were okay with Tk5,000 per month.

But if the government increases the amount, it should be equal for all, they de-mand.

It is discriminatory and insulting to some extent to those freedom � ghters who won’t get Tk 10,000 monthly allowance, they allege.

Presiding over the meeting, Dipti said: “People from all walks of life took part in the liberation war in 1971 irrespective of age, caste, religion and status.” l

Workers’ broom procession protesting privatisation driven Our Correspondent, Khulna

Workers of state owned Alim Jute Mills in Khulna brought out a broom procession yes-terday protesting against the government’s plans to privatise the industry.

Sources said under the banner of Priva-tisation Resistance Committee, the workers brought out the procession from in front of the mill in the morning.

Later, they blocked the Khulna-Jessore Highway causing serious su� erings to the commuters.

A meeting was also held on the premis-es of the mill where workers’ leader Abdus Salam Jamaddar, Syful Islam Mintu, Sarder Abdul Hamid, Mujibur Rahman Makbul, Ab-bas Ali, Iqbal Hossain, Sheikh Zakaria, Anwar Hossain, Abed Ali , Redowan Hossain Bahar, Babul Reza, Akbar Ali, Hafez Abdus Salam and Ra� qul Islam.

The speakers threatened the government that they would paralyse Khulna city if the authorities concerned did not cancel their de-

cision about privatising the mill immediately.The government announced privatis-

ing the Alim Jute Mills about four monthsback.

According to the Dhaka Tribune reports on 22 May, a cash crunch hit nine state-owned jute mills in Khulna and Jessore regions, with the workers demanding that money be allo-cated to purchase raw jute.

But the mills’ authorities said this was the result of unsold jute products piling up at the factories and not particularly a � nancial prob-lem.

In mills where jute has not been stored, however, productions have fallen and work-ers have not been paid on time.

The reports say, at Alim Jute Mill, pro-duction stopped on May 3 because of ashortage of jute and the factory’s privatisation is due.

But Md Abdur Rashid, labour leader at Alim Jute Mill, said workers were � ercely op-posed to the idea of privatisation and they would strongly protest against it. l

Alleged mugger lynched in Noakhalin Our Correspondent, Noakhali

A suspected snatcher was killed by a mob in Dasherhat area, Subarnachar upazila, Noakhali yesterday morning. The victim was identi� ed as Md Babul, 28, son on Abul Majhi, a resident of Char Jubilee village.

Nizam Uddin, o� cer-in-charge of Char Jabber police station, said Babul and his friend had hired a motorcycle from Bhumihin Bazar to go to Subarnachar upazila headquar-ters around 12:30am.

When they reached near Dasherhat area, Babul and his friend stabbed motorbike driv-er Nuruzzaman form backside. Hearing his screaming, locals went to the spot and caught Babul red handed and started beating him up. But his accomplice managed to � ee.

Police admitted them to Subarnachar Upazila Health Complex where he died yes-terday morning. l

Jackfruit growers in losses for extortionn Our Correspondent, Khagrachhari

Jackfruit growers in Khagrachhari are unhap-py as they have been counting losses due to rampant extortion by some in� uential quar-ters.

The growers said they were selling jack-fruits at expected prices, but are not getting expected pro� ts in turn due to rampant extor-tion.

According to the District Agricultural Ex-tension o� ce, there are jackfruit gardens on 8,383 acres of land in the district and produc-tion of the seasonal fruit has always been sat-isfactory.

Muhammad Mostapa Mia, a jackfruit grow-er from Fatema Nagor under Panchhari upazi-la, said he had brought 1,500 jackfruits in Mat-iranga Bazar.

“I gave Tk9,000 as extortion to members of the United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF),

Parbattya Chattagram Jana Sanghity Samity (PCJSS), PCJSS (MN Larma group). Now, po-lice are demanding Tk5,000 as toll,” he added.

He presumes he would count a huge loss after adding in transport and labour costs.

Replying to another query, he said: “Police never assist us during transportation of the seasonal fruits; rather they create di� culties for us.”

Elton Chakma, another farmer from Babu-chhara, Dighinala upazila in Khagrachhari, said he had given Tk2,000 as ransom to re-gional forums to bring the jackfruits to Digh-inala Bazar. But he did not say speci� cally to whom he gave the money.

Farmer Ismail Hossain from Sonaipul vil-lage under Ramgorh upazila in the district said he had an orchard on 50 acres of land and he got bumper production of jackfruits this year.

“The price of jackfruits is satisfactory, but

our pro� ts go to the pocket of both criminals and the law enforcement agency,” he added.

Abul Khair, a buyer from Laksam of Comil-la, alleged that he had counted Tk47,000 in losses last week due to the unbearable heat and ongoing toll collection at di� erent toll points.

Jugal Pado Dey, agriculture extension of-� cer, said the weather was suitable for jack-fruit cultivation this year.

Despite the barriers, including extortion, farmers will make pro� ts, as more than 80% of the total jackfruits are exported to outer districts of the country as is done every year, he said.

Additional Superintendent of Police Enay-et Hossain Mannan denied police involve-ment in extortion.

He said stern action would be taken against his subordinates if anyone makes speci� c alle-gation against any police o� cer. l

Workers of Alim Jute Mills in Khulna yesterday bring out broom procession in the town protesting against the government’s plans to privatise the industry DHAKA TRIBUNE

NEWS 7D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Source: Accuweather/UNB

D H A K ATODAY TOMORROW

SUN SETS 6:48PM SUN RISES 5:11AM

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

36.8ºC 24.7ºC

Rajshahi Feni

SourceL IslamicFinder.org

F O R E C A S T F O R T O D A YDhaka 36 28Chittagong 34 27Rajshahi 33 27Rangpur 33 26Khulna 32 26Barisal 32 26Sylhet 34 26Cox’s Bazar 32 26

PRAYER TIMESFajr 3:40am

Sunrise 5:10amJumma 12:00am

Asr 4:41pmMagrib 6:48pm

Esha 8:18pm

WEATHER

FRIDAY, JUNE 19

THUNDERSHOWER WITH RAIN

City su� ers unusual tailbackn Abu Hayat Mahmud

The entire tra� c system in Dhaka yesterday collapsed as thousands of vehicles were stuck in gridlock for hours with the month of Ram-adan a day away.

The thought of what would befall them during the month of Ramadan � lled city peo-ple with apprehension.

Only a � ve-kilometre bus ride from Shah-bagh to Sukrabad took this correspondent more than an hour.

A commuter from the old Dhaka said he went to Karwan Bazar from Gulistan after he was caught in a jam.

Most of the city roads including Farmgate, Shahbagh, Sukrabad, Newmarket, Elephant Road, Mohakhali, Rampura, Badda, Paltan, Jatrabai, Gulistan, Motijheel virtually came to a standstill.

Farida Rahman, a housewife waiting in a tra� c jam on a public bus in Elephant Road said it took her an hour to reach Elephant Road from Motijheel.

Exasperated, commuters were seen com-ing out of the public buses to walk to their destination.

“Every Thursday I am used to walking to Mohakhali from Farmgate but the tailback today seems to be much more painful aspeople even cannot walk smoothly on the pavement. The city is now uninhabitable,” Anwar Hossain thus vented his anger to the reporter.

Contacted, Tra� c Control Room o� cials acknowledged that the city su� ered unusual tra� c gridlock.

They said it happened as city people came onto the streets in hundreds to buy essentials ahead of the month of Ramadan and moreo-ver, it was the last day of the week. l

Students killed in road crash in Chittagong n Tribune Report

A speedy truck ran over an honours student of Chittagong Government City College, leav-ing him dead on spot in Shulokbohor area of Chittagong yesterday.

Identi� ed as Satyapriyo Das, 24, was a � nal year student of Economics department of the college and hailed from Maheshkhali upazila of Cox’s Bazar.

He used to live at a mess in Rowshon Boarding area.

Following the accident, Satyapriyo’s classmates and other students of the col-lege blocked Probortok intersection near Chittagong Medical College Hospital from 12noon-1pm creating undue su� erings to the commuters on the adjoining routes.

Panchlaish police station O� cer-in-Charge Mohiuddin Mahmud said a speedy truck ran over the student while he was crossing the road under the Bahaddarhat � yover around 9am.

The Satyapriyo’s maternal uncle Sridham Das said Satyapriyo went out of his residence to provide tuition in Chawkbazar area. He used to bear his educational expenses by pro-viding private tuitions.

“Satyapriyo’s father died last year by drowning. Priyo was scheduled to sit for year � nal exams on July 11. He was a brilliant stu-dent and had been the � rst boy of his batch since 2012,” said Sridham.

Earlier, two BBA students of Uttar Kattali Mostafa Hakim Degree College were killed in a similar road crash on Saturday. l

40 risky structures evicted from Ctg hillsn Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong

The Chittagong district administration yes-terday evicted 40 illegal and risky establish-ments from hills in the city’s Tiger Pass area which are owned by AK Khan Group.

The aim of the drive was to avoid possible casualties caused by landslides during the on-going rainy season, said district administra-tion o� cials.

A total of 93 illegal and risky establish-ments were evicted from the hills in Matijhar-na and Tiger Pass areas in the last three days.

Three executive magistrates - Abu Hasan

Siddique, Afzal Hossain and Saiful Islam - led yesterday’s eviction drive carried out from 10:30am till 4pm while o� cials of Chittagong Wasa, � re service, Chittagong City Corpora-tion, Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Limited, Roads and Highways Department, Power Development Board and law enforce-ment agencies were also present.

Assistant Commissioner and Executive Magistrate Rajib-ul-Ahsan, spokesperson of the district administration, said Chittagong’s Deputy Commissioner Mezbah Uddin paid a visit to the area when the drive was on

“Earlier, o� cials made a loudspeaker an-

nouncement, asking people living in the area to evacuate,” he said, adding that water, power and gas supply lines were disconnected before start-ing the drive as part of precautionary measures.

It is the lower-income families that mostly live in the foothills in the port city in abodes built under the authority of a section of in� u-ential politicians.

According to the Chittagong DC o� ce, roughly 666 families live in slopes of 25 hills, putting their lives at risk.

An estimated 200 people having homes in foothills were killed in landslides in the last eight years during rainy seasons. l

Drive against food adulterationn Tribune Report

A month-long special drive against food adul-teration will be conducted by mobile courts under the supervision of Bangladesh Stand-ards and Testing Institution (BSTI), said In-dustries Minister Amir Hossain Amu.

The decision to maintain food standard during the holy month of Ramadan was an-nounced at a press conference held yesterday morning at the Industries Ministry.

“If factories are found involved in food

adulteration they would be shut down along with the punishments. The drive could begin anytime,” said the industries minister.

“In the capital there will be four mobile court operational everyday under the joint initiative of BSTI and Dhaka District Adminis-tration,” he added. Mobile courts will be also be conducting drives in Keraniganj, Savar and Dhamrai areas.

The anti-adulteration drive will also be con-ducted countrywide by regional o� ces of BSTI, the minister said at the press conference. l

BCL man expelledn Our Correspondent, Rajshahi

The Rajshahi University authorities tempo-rarily expelled a leader of Bangladesh Chha-tra League from the university yesterday on charge of beating a cultural activist on campus.

Vice-Chancellor Prof Muhammad Miz-anuddin expelled Saddam Hossain alias Sajib, assistant secretary of BCL RU unit and a third year student of law department.

On June 9, Sajib, along with his associates, beat up the former president of RU Kendrio Sangskritik Jote Basudev Ray. l

Hundreds of vehicles get stuck in the city’s Bangla Motor area due to unusal tra� c gridlock yesterday, a day ahead of Ramadan MEHEDI HASAN

WORLD8DTFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Papal move boosts hopes for climate dealn AFP, Paris

Pope Francis’s encyclical on the environment provides a massive mobilising boost for ef-forts to reach a UN deal on climate change this year, green campaigners said yesterday.

They hailed the 184-page document, “Laudato Si” as a milestone.

For many Catholics, they predicted, it could transform climate from a remote envi-ronmental problem into a pressing moral is-

sue demanding action.Its impact could be far-reaching in the

e� ort to conclude a UN accord on curbing greenhouse-gases, due less than six months from now.

“The Pope’s message can only help strengthen the momentum toward an agree-ment in Paris,” said Elliot Diringer, executive vice president of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), a US thinktank.

“(He) is injecting a powerful moral voice

into a debate usually mired in science, poli-tics and economics.

Andrew Steer, head of another US think-tank, the World Resources Institute (WRI), pointed to the spiritual authority and mobi-lising clout of the Catholic church.

“It will speak not only to the 5,000 Catho-lic bishops nor only to the 1.2 billion Catho-lics worldwide, but to all people of goodwill who are open to the moral context of climate change,” he said. l

Manhunt on for US black church shootern AFP, Charleston

US police yesterday hunted for a 21-year-old white gunman who killed nine people at a prayer meeting in one of the nation’s oldest black churches in Charleston, as federal au-thorities opened a hate crimes probe.

The shooting at the Emanuel African Meth-odist Episcopal Church in the southeastern US city was one of the worst attacks on a place of worship in the country in recent years, and comes at a time of lingering racial tensions.

Churchgoers had gathered Wednesday evening when the shooter walked into the building, sat in the congregation for about an hour and then opened � re.Police have iden-ti� ed the suspect as Dylann Roof. He is from the area near Columbia, the state capital of South Carolina, which is about a two-hour drive from Charleston.

Three men and six women were killed, and several other people were wounded. Among the dead was the church’s pastor Clementa Pinckney, who was also a Democratic state senator.

“I do believe it was a hate crime,” Charleston Police Chief Gregory Mullen said.

The shooting comes at a time of height-ened racial tensions in America, after several high-pro� le killings of unarmed black men at the hands of white police in recent months led to protests and a national debate on race.

A Justice Department spokesperson said a hate crimes probe had been opened, with FBI agents working in tandem in with local police.

The incident once again highlights broad racial tensions that persist in many US com-munities, more than � ve decades after the Civil Rights Act outlawed racial and other forms of discrimination.

In April, in the neighbouring city of North Charleston, a white police o� cer was charged after a video surfaced of him fatally shooting a � eeing black man in the back. l

Malaysian navy shadows tanker, urges hijackers to give upn AFP, Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia’s navy has located a tanker that dis-appeared a week ago in the South China Sea and was urging its hijackers to surrender, the country’s naval chief said yesterday.

The MT Orkim Harmony, which had 6,000 tonnes of petrol in its hold and 22 crew aboard, has been given fresh touches of paint and had its name altered to “Kim Harmon,” according to photos released by Malaysia’s navy.

A patrol vessel was now shadowing the tanker and communicating with its hijackers in a bid to secure their surrender, Royal Ma-laysian Navy chief Admiral Abdul Aziz Jaafar said on his Twitter feed.

“At least eight perpetrators are onboard. They are armed with pistols and parangs (ma-chetes). They speak with Indonesian accent(s),” he added. “All crew are safe and unharmed.”

The vessel was in Vietnamese waters, about 200 nautical miles (370 kilometres)

northeast of the Malaysian city of Kota Bah-ru, o� cials said.

The Malaysian-registered tanker is the latest victim of increasingly brazen pirates behind an upsurge in hijackings in Southeast Asia in the past two years.

The typical targets are usually tankers car-rying valuable petrol, diesel or gas oil.

O� cials have estimated the value of the MT Orkim Harmony’s cargo at 21 million ringgit ($5.6 million). Its crew includes 16 Malaysians, � ve Indonesians and a Myanmar national.

It was en route from Malacca on Malay-sia’s west coast to the port of Kuantan on the eastern coast. Its owners lost contact with the ship last yesterday while it was o� the south-ern state of Johor.

The vessel was spotted Wednesday by a search-and-rescue operation, o� cials said.

The London-based International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has repeatedly warned that the waters of Southeast Asia were becoming the

world’s piracy hotspot and called for decisive regional action to thwart attacks.

Pirates are preying on slow-moving small coastal tankers, with one attack occurring every two weeks, the IMB said recently. Pirates usually syphon o� cargoes to other vessels be-fore later releasing the tankers and crews.

The MT Orkim Harmony’s owners, Malay-sia’s Orkim Ship Management, has said the tanker’s cargo appeared untouched after ana-lysing photos of the hijacked vessel, said Ah-mad Puzi, a top Malaysian coast guard o� cial.

Southeast Asia saw 38 pirate attacks dur-ing January-March, or 70 percent of the glob-al total of 54, the IMB said in an April report, calling the frequency of regional incidents “an increasing cause for concern.”

A scourge for centuries, piracy in South-east Asian had been signi� cantly reduced over the past decade thanks to stepped-up re-gional cooperation and maritime patrols, but has re-emerged. l

Russia, Saudi Arabia to discuss oil cooperationn Reuters, St Petersburg

The oil ministers of Russia and Saudi Arabia plan to discuss a broad cooperation agree-ment yesterday at an economic forum in St Petersburg, two sources told Reuters.

Saudi Arabia is the top producer in the Or-ganization of the Petroleum Exporting Coun-tries and the world’s top oil exporter, while Rus-sia, which is not an OPEC member, is the second biggest oil supplier to the global markets.

One source said the agreement to be dis-cussed between Russian Energy Minister Alex-ander Novak and Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Nai-mi would not be about joint oil production or export strategy. Russia has stepped up contacts with OPEC after oil prices plunged last year.

Saudi Arabia is pumping oil at a record high as it focuses on keeping market share, while Russian output hit a post-Soviet high of 10.71 million barrels per day (bpd) in April.

Despite ample supply, oil prices have ral-lied to almost $65 a barrel in 2015 after sliding toward $45 in January. l

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un smiles as he watches a � ring contest of anti-aircraft artillery personnel in this photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang yesterday REUTERS

WORLD 9D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Hong Kong vetoes China electoral proposaln Reuters, Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s legislature yesterday vetoed a Chi-na-backed electoral reform package criticised by opposition pro-democracy lawmakers and ac-tivists as undemocratic, easing for now the pros-pect of fresh mass protests in the � nancial hub.

The rejection had been expected and will likely appease some activists who had de-manded a veto of what they call a “fake” dem-ocratic model for how the Chinese-controlled territory chooses its next leader in 2017.

But it was a setback for Beijing’s Commu-nist leaders, who said they remained commit-

ted to universal su� rage for Hong Kong but signalled no further concessions.

Beijing had pressured and cajoled the city’s pro-democracy lawmakers to back the blue-print that would have allowed a direct vote for the city’s chief executive, but with only pre-screened, pro-Beijing candidates on the ballot.

The vote came earlier than expected, with only 37 of the 70 members of the Legislative Council, known as “legco,” present. Of these, 28 legislators voted against and eight voted in favour, while one did not cast a vote.

The city’s current pro-Beijing leader Le-ung Chun-ying said: “Universal su� rage for

the chief executive election has now been blocked. Universal su� rage to elect all mem-bers of legco has also become uncertain.”

In an unexpected twist, moments before the ballot a large number of pro-establish-ment and pro-Beijing lawmakers suddenly walked out of the chamber. The votes of one-third of legco members are su� cient to push through a veto.

Democratic lawmakers, all 27 of whom vot-ed against the plan, marched to the front of the chamber immediately after the veto and unfurled a sign calling for genuine universal su� rage and for Hong Kongers not to give up. l

Indian man loses long legal battle over his own birthn AFP, Ahmedabad

An Indian man who sued the authorities over his own birth because his mother conceived after undergoing sterilisation in a state clinic, has lost his decades-long legal battle.

Rajesh Laljibhai Patel’s mother launched a lawsuit against the government of India’s western Gujarat state two years after he was born in 1985.

Vijuben Patel, who already had four chil-dren, had undergone a sterilisation procedure at a camp organised by authorities in the state six years earlier.

She argued that government should pay for her son’s maintenance, citing medical negligence, and named him as a plainti� in the case even though he was just two years old at the time.

India’s legal system moves notoriously slowly and it was not until 1992 that the court ruled in her favour, ordering authorities to pay her 25,000 rupees (about $400). But the authorities appealed, and a higher court � -nally ordered the family to repay the money in December last year – by which time Rajesh had grown up and his mother had died.

Rajesh, now a soldier in the Indian army, launched a counter-appeal in April. His law-yer EE Saiyed told AFP said he wanted to achieve justice for his late mother.

But the Gujarat high court rejected his ap-peal, ruling that sterilization carried a margin-al rate of failure and his birth did not consti-tute medical negligence.

“Prima facie it appears that all methods of family planning have small but varying degrees of possibility of failure,” Justice Akil Kureshi said in his judgement, adding that Rajesh will have to repay the 25,000 rupees given to his mother. l

Cambodians on Thai ‘slave’ boats rescuedn AFP, Phnom Penh

More than 200 Cambodian � shermen rescued from “slave-like conditions” on Thai � shing boats in Indonesian waters returned home yesterday, some after years of captivity, o� -cials and victims said.

Some 230 � shermen who were tra� cked to work on Thai � shing vessels in Indonesian waters have been rescued since May, accord-ing to a statement from the Cambodian for-eign ministry.

All but 17 of them were � own to Phnom Penh yesterday morning from Indonesia’s Ambon island on a jet hired by the PT Maribu Industries Group, a company representing the Thai boats, Chou Bun Eng, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Interior, told reporters.

The remaining 17 will be � own to Cambo-dia later, she said, adding the company had agreed to pay outstanding salaries to the en-tire group. “Some of them are in bad health. One cannot walk. His body is partly para-lysed,” Chou Bun Eng added.

Thai companies have been linked to shad-owy � shing operations in Indonesia, where many vessels are suspected of enslaving for-eign � shermen – including Thais. l

Chad war planes bomb Boko Haram after attacksn AFP, N’Djamena

Chad said yesterday its warplanes bombed Boko Haram positions in neighbouring Ni-geria to avenge twin suicide bombings in the capital this week blamed on the jihadists.

The government also Wednesday an-nounced it was banning the burqa nationwide in a security clampdown following Monday’s attacks in N’Djamena that left 33 people dead and more than 100 wounded.

Chad’s military vowed it would continue its “merciless” pursuit of the Islamist insur-gents “so that no drop of spilt Chadian blood goes unpunished.”

“In response to the cowardly and barbar-ic acts perpetrated by Boko Haram terrorists

... the armed forces carried out reprisal air strikes on the terrorists’ positions in Nigerian territory on Wednesday,” the military said.

Six Boko Haram bases were destroyed in the air raids, which caused “considerable hu-man and material losses,” it said.

Monday’s attacks on the police headquar-ters and a police academy in N’Djamena were the � rst in the capital of the central African country, which has taken a lead role in a re-gional o� ensive against the Nigeria-based Boko Haram.

No group claimed responsibility but Chad and its allies immediately blamed the insur-gents, who have carried out a series of bloody attacks in border areas of countries that share a frontier with northeastern Nigeria.

Chad also Wednesday banned the full-face Muslim veil and ordered security forces to seize burqas from markets and burn them.

“Wearing the burqa must stop immediate-ly from today, not only in public places and schools but throughout the whole of the coun-try,” Prime Minister Kalzeube Pahimi Deubet told religious leaders the day before the start of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

Any type of clothing that leaves only the eyes visible is a form of “camou� age” and is now banned, he added, asking religious leaders to spread the message in mosques, churches and other holy places.

Anyone found wearing a burqa will be “ar-rested, tried and sentenced in summary pro-ceedings,” he added. l

A Syrian mother tries to warm up her daugter after they arrived on the island of Lesbos, early yesterday. Some 48,000 migrants and refugees have landed on Greek shores so far this year, compared to 34,000 arrivals during all of 2014, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) AFP

WORLD10DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

EU frowns on Hungarian border fence against migrantsn AFP, Brussels

The European Union yesterday said Hungary’s building of a fence to keep out migrants was not an e� ective way of halting the tide of humanity washing up on Europe’s borders.

Hungary on Wednesday said it would build a four-metre (13-foot) high fence on its border with Serbia, arguing that other countries such as Spain and Greece had taken similar measures and it was not breaking any international law by doing so.

Asked about the announcement, European Commission spokeswoman Natasha Bertaud said “member states have the re-sponsibility to manage their own borders...however any measure has to be fully in line with EU laws and international obligations.”

Among those, was the international obligation accepted by the European Union that those migrants seeking asylum should not be turned back, Bertaud said. “More generally, the Commis-sion does not promote the use of fences. We have only recently taken down fences in Europe and we should not be putting them up again,” she said. Member states should look at alternatives, she added, without giving details.

Right-wing Premier Viktor Orban, who has a record of spats with Brussels, has been among the harshest critics of EU plans to manage the upsurge in migrant numbers by spreading the bur-den around the 28-nation bloc.

On Wednesday, Budapest said it had ordered work to start along the length of its 175-kilometre (110-mile) border with non-EU member Serbia.

Hungary is in the EU’s passport-free Schengen zone which means that once migrants are inside the country, they can travel freely elsewhere. Last year, Hungary took in more refugees per capita than any other EU country apart from Sweden. So far this year some 54,000 refugees have entered Hungary, most of them via Serbia, according to government � gures.

Spokeswoman Bertaud said the Commission “has made it very clear that when it comes to migration there are no national solutions only EU ones.” l

UNHCR says West should follow Turkey exampleon Syria refugeesn AFP, Istanbul

The UN’s refugee chief yesterday urged the world including Western states to open up their borders and follow Turkey’s ex-ample in hosting Syrian refugees.

Turkey, which has taken in some 1.8 million Syrian refugees since the con� ict started in 2011, has repeatedly said that it has been left to shoulder a disproportionate burden as Western states stand by.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres told re-porters in Istanbul at the launch of UNHCR’s annual report that the world had a universal responsibility to protect the refugees.

“It is important that the European Union, like the Gulf Coun-tries, like other parts of the world, also open their borders,” he said.

He said Turkey’s generosity has a special meaning in a world where “so many borders are closed or restricted and where new walls are being built or announced.”

“This should force everyone to follow this example,” he said.“It is not only (a responsibility) of Turkey, of Lebanon or of

Jordan,” said Guterres, referring to two other countries which have also taken in large numbers of Syrian refugees.

“It is a global responsibility,” he said. Turkey has persued an “open-door” policy championed by

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan towards Syrian refugees, which Ankara has continued even amid increasing social strains.

The Turkish authorities last week caused controversy by clos-ing its borders to refugees � eeing clashes between Kurds and ji-hadists for the Syrian town of Tal Abyad.

But it later opened the border and has taken in some 23,000 refugees � eeing the � ghting. l

Key arrest in India nun rape casen Tribune Desk

Police in India yesterday said they had arrested the main suspect in the rape of an elderly nun that sent shock-waves through the country’s Christian community.

Police in the state capital Kolkata said they had arrested a 28-year-old Bangladeshi man whom they iden-ti� ed only by one name, Noju, at a railway station in the city late on Wednesday.

A Bangladesh Foreign Ministry of-� cial yesterday told the Dhaka Trib-une that they were not aware of the claims made by Kolkata police about the nationality of the suspect.

The nun, who is in her 70s, need-ed surgery after the attack in March, when a gang of robbers broke into the

convent school where she lived in the eastern state of West Bengal.

“Noju is the key suspect in the case,” said Dilip Kumar Adak, the local deputy inspector general of the Crimi-nal Investigation Department.

Adak said the suspect had � ed to Bangladesh after being identi� ed from CCTV footage of the attack.

Police got a tip-o� that he would return on Wednesday, and went to the train station, where they arrested him.

“He was picked up when the train reached the station in the city,” Adak told AFP. “We have now arrested six of the eight suspects. Two suspects are still at large.”

Adak said in a previous interview with AFP that police had identi� ed all eight people who broke into the Con-vent of Jesus and Mary High School us-

ing CCTV footage.One had been hired by the nuns

to do construction work, he said. All those arrested so far are Bangladeshi, according to police.

In the weeks following the March attack, Christians in the country, who make up 2.3 percent of the population, spoke of their fear, with one pastor tell-ing AFP he saw the break-in as part of a wider campaign “to marginalise mi-norities in India”.

India is home to tens of thousands of Bangladeshis who o� cials say cross illegally into the country, mainly through borders in West Bengal, Tripu-ra and Assam. The two countries share a 4,000-kilometre (2,500-mile) border, part of which has been fenced by India in a bid to prevent illegal immigrants entering. l

11D

TEDITORIALFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

INSIDE

The proposal to lower the minimum marriage age for women to 16 will only increase the social pressures which push many young girls into child marriage and premature motherhood.

According to UNICEF, three-quarters of Bangladeshi girls are married under the current minimum age of 18, with 29% already married by the age of 15.

This in� icts huge health hazards on the millions of teenagers who become mothers each year. As well as increasing maternal and child mortality rates, underage marriage stops many girls from advancing in higher education and participating in the job market.

Embedding very early ages for mothers to have their � rst child actively undermines initiatives to � ght poverty, and negates the bene� ts of family planning policies in reducing average family size, by increasing future population growth rates.

Simply criticising child marriage and its negative impacts is not good enough, however.

We need to have an open debate about sex and social attitudes. One unspoken fact is that many parents prefer to push girls into underage marriage, rather than face up to the possibility that they may be mature and independent enough to engage in sexual activity outside marriage.

Another is that the implied age of consent under Section 375 of our Penal Code is fourteen. While this is the same as other countries such as Germany, we believe it would help policies to protect children from predators if this was expressly set at 16 as is most common in other jurisdictions.

This should not mean however refusing to acknowledge that some adolescents do and will continue to engage in sexual activity outside marriage. We need to overcome the taboos and social stigma which silence discussion about pre-marital sex as these are causing huge harm by encouraging the high rates of underage marriage, which often end in abandonment of young mothers and their children.

As a country with a very youthful population, we must improve education on sex and relationships and provide all adolescents with e� ective knowledge about family planning and preventing STDs. We need to end the silence if we are to bring down and end underage marriage.

We need to overcome the taboos and social stigma which silence discussion about pre-marital sex

We need to end the silence

What the latest budget means for entrepreneurs

Showdown in the South China SeaChina’s recent political and economic emergence is seen as a direct challenge to the US-dominated international economic order

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Secularism, Bangladeshi-styleBangladesh cannot wait for our society to secularise before establishing secularism as a principle of statecraft

The proposed budget has given rise to mixed feelings among entrepreneurs

BIGSTOCK

OPINION12DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

n Zafar Sobhan

For you is your religion, and for me is my religion-- Surah al-Ka� run

These days secularism seems to be under � re from many di� erent quarters in Bangladesh.

In addition to the attacks on secularism from the usual suspects -- that is, those who want Bangladesh to be an Islamic theocracy and believe that it is the secular character of the state that is the root of all our ills -- secularism has also come under an intellectual assault of late from scholars and social scientists.

Here the discourse revolves around the identi� cation of secularism as an ideology imposed on post-colonial societies as part and parcel of the contested discourse of modernisation and westernisation, and impossible to divorce from the power relations inherent to such an understanding.

As such, there now exists a rich vein of scholarship that seeks, in the words of Prof Ali Riaz, in a noteworthy recent lecture on the subject: “To o� er a critical interrogation of the concept of secularism,” from which the “point of departure is that secularism should be viewed as a contested and contestable concept.”

In short, secularism is now no longer considered an unalloyed good by the liberal intelligentsia.

It seems to me that much of the current discourse surrounding secularism is a semantic one, and that much depends on how we de� ne our terms.

First, therefore, it is necessary to de� ne exactly what we mean by secularism in the Bangladeshi context and to fully appreciate the di� erence between secularism and secularisation.

If I understand correctly, secularisation

refers to the relegation of religion to the private sphere and the ultimate decline of religion’s in� uence in society, and secularisation theory holds that secular government policy will inevitably lead to secularisation in society, and that secularisation is a desirable social outcome that is indispensible to the transformation of a society from a traditional one to a modern one.

But I am not sure that secularisation was ever the project of secularism as a government policy in Bangladesh. In short, it seems to me that one can have secularism without wishing for secularisation to be the eventual or even the desired outcome.

What, then, is secularism, in the Bangladeshi context?

Perhaps the best way to understand it is to return to how the word is rendered in Bangla in the Bangladeshi constitution. It was National Professor Anisuzzaman who translated the original English text, and the word he chose was “dhormo niropekkhota” which translated back into English means religious neutrality.

It was an inspired choice, and, I believe, gets to the heart of secularism as it is understood by Bangladeshis and as it was intended as a guiding principle for our nation.

It does not relegate religion to unimportance or seek the diminution of religion as a part of life as a goal.

The scholarly de� nition of secularism that best tracks with the original Bangladeshi understanding of the term is perhaps o� ered by Jose Casanova as:

“Some principle of separation between religious and political authority, either for the sake of the neutrality of the state vis-à-vis each and all religions, or for the sake of protecting the freedom of conscience of each individual, or for the sake of facilitating the equal access of all citizens, religious as well as non-religious, to democratic participation. Such a statecraft doctrine

neither presupposes nor needs to entail any substantive ‘theory,’ positive or negative, of ‘religion.’”

It seems to me that the above de� nition captures it perfectly. Bangladesh cannot wait for our society to secularise before establishing secularism as a principle of statecraft, nor indeed is the secularisation of society even desirable or a goal of secularism.

Nor, it is clear, under this de� nition, is there any connection between secularism and atheism or hostility to or disrespect for or dismissal of religion and religious faith and religious thought.

To critics of secularism, I would ask: What is the alternative?

In fact, secularism is the only principle of statecraft under which religion can � ourish as it is the only one which allows for the existence of multiple understandings and practices of religious faith.

The alternative, which is theocracy, by de� nition, only allows for the practice of a single, singular, interpretation and understanding of religion, that endorsed by the state, and any alternate or heterodox expressions of religious faith or belief are cast beyond the pale.

In the context of Islam, the imposition of a theocracy would equally oppress those Muslims who do not subscribe to the version of Islam that the state would seek to impose, almost as much as it would oppress those of other religious faith or no faith.

One only needs to look at the other religious theocracies around the globe to see the truth of this statement and the danger inherent in such a system to all people of faith and people of all faiths.

As for whether secularism in Bangladesh is an alien or Western creed, imposed as part of a neo-imperialist, post-colonial project based on the problematic concepts of modernisation and enlightenment: Only if respect for equal rights and freedom of conscience and freedom of worship are concepts that are alien to Bangladesh, and imposed from outside. l

I am indebted to Prof Ali Riaz for his lecture “The Future of Secularism,” given at IUB on June 14 as part of the Professor Salahuddin Ahmed Memorial Seminar, from which all de� nitions of secularism and secularisation hereinabove are taken. Any misunderstandings or misrepresentations are mine alone.

Zafar Sobhan is the Editor, Dhaka Tribune.

Secularism, Bangladeshi-style

In fact, secularism is the only principle of statecraft under which religion can � ourish as it is the only one which allows for the existence of multiple understandings and practices of religious faith

Respect for the freedom of worship is not a concept alien to Bangladesh BIGSTOCK

OPINION 13D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

n Amdadul Haque

The South China Sea has always been a geo-political hotspot in interna-tional politics, a part of the Paci� c Ocean bordering with Brunei,

China, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The sea’s importance largely results from a large portion of the world’s commercial merchant ships passing through these waters, and reserves of huge undiscov-ered oil and gas.

Though the dispute has been going on for centuries, claims to ownership of the islands as the Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands, Scarborough Shoal, etc possibly came into focus in the third century, and the dispute deepened over the Chinese claim of the sea based on the nine-dotted line in 1947, which provides historical support for their claims to the South China Sea.

The bordering nations and the US claim an eleven-dotted line in reality. Subsequent-ly, the incident gave a di� erent � avour to various crucial periods in world history, such as the Cold War, the post-Cold War period, and the New World Order. Now it has become a � eld for the “great powers game” being played in the power politics of the Indo-Pacif-ic regions, with China on one side and the US on the other.

However, current disputes came into fo-cus over China’s projects in building airstrips in the Spratly Islands and drilling rigs into waters near Paracel Islands seeking to inhabit its people, basing military assets, and over-seeing this busy shipping route.

In the latest incident, the foreign policy of the two nations worsened again when the US Navy P-8A Poseidon surveillance aircraft � ew near the Fiery Cross Reef in Spratly Islands. The US Department of Foreign A� airs termed

China’s activities as “excessive,” “outra-geous,” and “without basis under interna-tional law.”

The South China Sea is of geo-political and geo-strategic importance to China, ASEAN, and the US. To China, as a great regional power, � rstly, the dominance over this sea is imperative to exert greater political and eco-nomic in� uence in Asia and Southeast Asia. To protect its core interests, China needs to control its strategic stability belt (a regional or global security environment in which na-tions enjoy peaceful and friendly relations).

This is also important in bringing together Taiwan with the mainland under China’s grand strategy in becoming a superpower. In this regard, China is increasing its naval presence in the South China Sea. As a result, the country treats the sea as an important “backyard” to shield the mainland from any sea attack.

Secondly, it is widely believed that the sea has great potential in terms of unexplored oil and gas. China is now importing oil from the Middle East despite huge transportation

costs. Beijing's energy security strategy is based on the exploration of natural resources from the sea to ful� ll its own demands as well as regional littoral countries. For this reason, China wants to seize control over important sea routes which are vital to its economy, such as the Malacca Strait and routes through the South China Sea. Since, through these routes, 50% of the global oil tanker shipments are transported.

If China is able to explore oil and gas from this sea, it may hinder oil and gas shipments through these lines. That, in turn, will create

an energy dependency for the other coun-tries, making them reliant on China, which is seemingly its ultimate goal.

On the other hand, China’s recent political and economic emergence -- with the estab-lishment of the Asian Infrastructure Invest-ment Bank and the BRICS Development Bank -- is seen as a direct challenge to the US-dom-inated international economic order such as the IMF, WB, and ADB in the region. To the US, it is high time to bring a halt to the pace of Beijing’s development. As a regional bloc,

the ASEAN is not an active association for China’s hegemonic role in the region.

As a consequence, the US is very much worried about the future of its own interests and that of its allies. The Centre for Strategic and International Studies has sketched three direct strategic challenges for the US centring the sea. Firstly, the US tends to see the imple-mentation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in the South China Sea, particular-ly for freedom of navigation for US military ships in the region, and the just distribution of sea-based natural resources among the nations following the convention.

Secondly, the US is now quite concerned about the protection of the interests of its traditional allies as they are strategic naval routes for Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, and Taiwan. It also tends to safeguard the interests of US gas and oil corporations in the region.

Thirdly, China’s military rise in the sea is deemed as the US’s failure to maintain Obama’s “pivot to Asia” policy -- remaining a global power in the Asia-Paci� c region through economic, political, and military presence. So, China’s control over the South China Sea is part of the country's endeavor to neutralise the US geo-economic and geo-po-litical in� uence in that region.

It is clear that there remains a game of power politics between China and the US over the South China Sea. A military solution is not the proper means to resolve this dis-pute as it will only work to deepen regional tensions. For the solution, the US and the ASEAN countries will have to voice concern through regional diplomatic forums and pro-mote maritime security co-operation.

Amdadul Haque is a research analyst at the Microgovernance Research Initiative.

Is a military solution the best way to deal with the South China Sea dispute? REUTERS

Showdown in the South China Sea

China’s recent political and economic emergence -- with the establishment of the AIIB and the BRICS Development Bank -- is seen as a direct challenge to the US-dominated international economic order

OPINION14DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

n Zahedul Amin

The budget 2015-16 carries signi� cant importance in the wake of recent political turmoil. Due to the instabil-ity, the nation has grossly su� ered,

facing slow economic growth. What’s more alarming is the steady decline of private sec-tor investments, wrought about by dampen-ing investor con� dence.

Apart from the stagnating private sector growth, government performance has signi� cantly been impacted, accounting for lower revenue collection and inadequate ADP implementation rate. As a result, the government had to revise the 2014-15 budget, which is still not expected to be ful� lled. Oth-er economic indicators, including FDI in� ow as well as export growth, have experienced signi� cant slowdown.

What the proposed budget entailedThe proposed budget, announced on June 4, has been earmarked at Tk295,100cr, the highest in the country’s history. Although the country’s 44th budget can been deemed ambitious, there are questions abound, pertaining to the government’s ability in fully implementing the budget.

Budget allocation: For a pro-growth budget, as a� rmed by the � nance minister, signi� cant resources have been allocated for infrastruc-ture development. Chief investments are allocated for energy (18.7%) and transport and communications (23.8%) sectors. Investments in infrastructure play a dual role in building a conducive environment for private invest-ments, as well as stimulating growth through direct government expenditure.

As part of government’s e� orts in ensuring income equality, budget has been allocated for local government and rural development (18.4%) with the agriculture sector (6.5%) re-ceiving allocation mainly for subsidy. Budget allocation in healthcare and education contributes a combined 17.7%. This � gure is inadequate and thus requires further alloca-tion in the amended budget. To summarise, the development budget received Tk985.87cr as fund allocation.

Budget implementation has been a chronic problem as the government had consistently missed implementing Annual Development Program (ADP) targets. Over the last three years, ADP implementation has hovered at around 66%, leaving humon-gous scope for improvement. Last year’s low ADP implementation has been attributed to an uncertain political climate and a heavy monsoon. However, corruption, nepotism, and bureaucratic red tape remain perennial challenges to ADP implementation.

Budget � nancing: Given the size of the budget, � nancing is bound to be a major challenge. Revenue collection growth over the years has been stagnating. The last � scal was particularly disappointing, as revenue collection missed the revised budget target. Revenue projections for the current budget have been set in assuming that all revenue

targets were being met in the last � scal. Even with a stable political scenario in

2015-16, meeting the steep revenue target of 59% of the total budget will be a major hurdle for the National Board of Revenue (NBR). The budget for 2015-16 is expected to have a de� -cit of Tk77,750cr, which is set to be � nanced through alternate modes of investments.

A major � nancing source includes foreign loans and grants accounting for 10% of the budget. Donor agencies, however, are unwill-ing to commit signi� cant budgetary funds. The government expected the World Bank to allocate $500m, but WB representatives recently visiting Bangladesh have expressed their unwillingness in extending budgetary support.

Government lending from the domes-tic banking system (19%) is another major source for � nancing the de� cit. Government borrowing can potentially have a knock-on e� ect in terms of “crowding away” funding from the private sector. This may further increase interest rates and aggravate the already sagging private investments.

How budget will impact entrepreneursThe proposed budget has given rise to mixed feelings among entrepreneurs. While some are going to directly bene� t, many more are, sadly, expected to receive the short end of the stick. Corporate taxes have been relaxed for publicly listed companies with proposed taxation rate lowered to 25%. This can be attributed to the government’s willingness and e� ort to rejuvenate our moribund capital market.

RMG: The RMG sector is Bangladesh’s highest export-generating sector, contrib-uting $26bn (81% of export). As the world’s third biggest apparel exporter, employing 4.2 million people, the sector has signi� cant clout on the country’s economy. The RMG sector has recently undergone turbulent times due to a series of industrial accidents as well as political maladies.

This has led the government to waive the source tax in the budget for 2014-15. However, in the latest budget, our � nance minister proposed imposing a source tax of 1% on all exports. This will adversely impact the sector. BGMEA, the association of RMG entrepreneurs, will have to play a pivotal role in ensuring withdrawal of the tax.

ITES & e-commerce: As part of the govern-ment’s vision to promote “Digital Bangla-desh,” the nation has increasingly focused on promoting the IT sector. In line with that, the government has accorded tax holidays of up to 10 years to IT companies in an act to pro-mote sectoral growth. However, a � edgling e-commerce sector has been imposed with 4% VAT, which is detrimental to its growth. The apparent contradiction certainly leaves a bad taste in the mouth for stakeholders in this rising sector.

Light engineering: The government is

looking to further develop the light engi-neering sector, which has the potential for saving foreign currency in the coming years. Imported tyres have been levied with 20% custom duties while tax holidays are being provided for companies planning to manu-facture within Bangladesh. Taxes have also been imposed on the import of motor cycle in an e� ort to promote locally manufactured/assembled motorcycles.

Other sectors: Some sectors will directly be impacted by the proposed budget in terms of higher customs duty. Products to be di-rectly impacted include: Billets for re-rolling mill, tempered safety glass and laminated safety glass tube pipes and hollow pro� les of cast iron, seamless made of cast iron or steel, line-pipe used for oil-gas distribu-tion, stainless steel tableware, kitchenware, sinks, wash basins, water taps and bathroom � ttings, copper sanitary ware and aluminum sanitary ware etc.

Recent eventsThe recent visit of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the subsequent four national connectivity deals involving Bangla-desh, India, Nepal, and Bhutan can signi� -cantly boost regional connectivity and trade relations.

However, regional integration may give way to intense competition in Bangladesh, leading to potential closure of vulnerable local players. Greater budgetary measures are imperative for protecting local companies and encouraging international companies to set up operations in Bangladesh. l

Zahedul Amin is a co-founder of LightCastle Partners, a business data � rm. He regularly blogs at www.lightcastlebd.com/blog.

What the latest budget means for entrepreneurs

Can the government put its money where its mouth is? BIGSTOCK

The proposed budget has given rise to mixed feelings among entrepreneurs

15D

TBusiness FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

BoE warns of spillover risks from global rate rises

17 Stocks inch down on pro� t booking 19

Construction of Bangabandhu Airport again on the cards

16Exporters urge govt not to raise tax at source

20

ICAB: Increased investment, good governance key to 7% growthn Tribune Report

The Institute of Chartered Ac-countants of Bang-ladesh (ICAB) has

said economic growth at 7% in the next � scal year is possible to achieve, but would be di� -cult unless good governance and increased in-vestment can be ensured.

“Since export, remittance and industri-al output continue to rise, the growth target in FY16 budget is not impossible. But what needs to be done is to make conducive invest-ment climate and to sti� e corruption,” said ICAB President Masih Malik Chowdhury at a post-budget discussion.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh hosted the programme in the city yesterday.

Laying emphasis on attracting both local and foreign investments, he said rise in pri-vate investment, plus foreign direct invest-ment, which now accounts for only 1% of GDP, is also necessary.

Echoing the president, ICAB Vice-Presi-dent AF Nesaruddin urged the government to cut corporate tax for non-listed companies to net foreign investment.

Former ICAB president Humayun Kabir said as the trade is increasingly becoming inte-grated with the globe, it is important to estab-lish transparency and accountability in every sector in a bid to woo foreign investment.

Another former ICAB president Syful Islam said people’s participation from all sectors is the key to implement the budget as the gov-ernment cannot do it alone.

He said every sector has got proper at-tention in the budget, but the government

should enhance e� ciency of people involved in implementing the budget.

Former ICAB president Abbas Uddin Khan said the quality of annual development spending needs to be improved, as ine� cien-cy in spending might create backlog of pro-jects taken in ADP like previous years.

ICAB councilor Shahadat Hosssain said � s-cal bank borrowing target might not impact the private sector credit growth as lowering interest rate on national savings instruments will encourage people to deposit money in the banks that already have a huge idle money.

ICAB has made a set of recommendations for setting up a research and development wing at the National Board of Revenue (NBR), separating tax appellate tribunal from the NBR and making Financial Reporting Act ef-fective in line with the advice of Cabinet to consider in the budget. l

Banks asked to establish separate agri credit cell n Tribune Report

Bangladesh Bank has asked all the scheduled banks to establish a separate agriculture cred-it department or cell to strengthen monitor-ing and supervision of farm loan disburse-ment and recovery.

The banks have also been asked to recruit necessary manpower for monitoring the cred-it activities, said a circular Bangladesh Bank issued yesterday.

Moreover, the banks have to appoint at least one o� cer to be tasked with agriculture loan activities only at branch level, and they will be responsible for informing the central bank about the credit activities by July 20 every year, according to the circular.

The designated cell and o� cer will actively participate in all activities like client selection, loan proposal preparation, evaluation, ap-proval, monitoring, loan disbursement, recov-ery, participation in the meeting of agri loan committee in district and upazila levels, meet-ing with farmers and monitoring activities.

The o� cers will be assigned to oversee that the farmers would not turn into defaulters.

BB took the decision considering the im-portance and contribution of agriculture to the country’s economy, the circular reads.

“The decision has been taken as some pri-vate banks do not pay attention to agri loan activities due to not having adequate man-power that hampers monitoring and supervi-sion,” said Provash Chandra Mallick, general manager of Agricultural Credit and Financial Inclusion, Department of Bangladesh Bank.

The disbursement of agricultural credit decreased by 2% and non-� rm rural credit by 32% during July-April period of the current � scal year as compared to the same period of the previous � scal year.

The banks extended a total loan of over Tk12,300 crore to the both sectors during Ju-ly-April this year.

Both agriculture and non-farm rural sector also recorded a fall in loan recovery by 4.36% and 28% respectively during July-April of FY15, compared to the same period of last � scal. lFour companies vie for Bangabandhu satellite

n Ishtiaq Husain

Four international companies from three countries � nally participated in the tender process of the installation and post-installa-tion support services for launching the coun-try’s � rst-ever ‘Bangabandhu’ satellite.

Though � ve global companies from four countries had earlier purchased the tender documents to get the work order for launch-ing the Bangabandhu satellite project, only four companies submitted their biddings yes-terday, the last date for the submission.

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regula-

tory Commission (BTRC) opened the tender documents just after an hour and a halfat around 2:30 pm.

Meanwhile, a three-member committee of the telecom watchdog has been formed to eval-uate the bid documents from the next week.

The four participant companies are- Great Wall Industry Corporation of China, MDA Corporation of France, Telus and Orbit from Canada. US-based Boeing didn’t participate in the bidding process.

Bangladesh signed a deal with Russia based Intersputnik for taking on lease an or-bital slot. Government is hoping to launch the

satellite by December 2017. BTRC will pay US$28m for

the use of frequencies at 119.1 degree East Orbital Slot while the route carry 40 transpond-ers for telecommunications, video and audio broadcast.

Estimated cost of the pro-ject is Tk2,967 crore, out of which around Tk1652 crore will be provided by the win-ning bidder, while the rest will come from the government ex-chequer. l

Speakers at a discussion on ‘Post-budget Scenario 2015’ at the National Press Club in the city yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

BUSINESS16DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

A year after the crash, oil markets risk more trouble aheadn Reuters, Singapore

A year on from the start of one of the biggest oil price crashes in history, the driving force behind the slide remains intact: there is still too much crude.

While output continues to grow, the eco-nomic outlook has darkened in top energy consumer China, where oil demand has been one of the few bright spots in the market.

Add to the mix record output by the Organ-ization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the possibility of a return of Ira-nian crude exports, and further price turbu-lence looks almost certain.

Oil prices began a seven-month rout this time last year that took Brent crude futures from $116 per barrel to around $45 by January.

While prices have crawled up since, there are few signs yet that OPEC’s strategy of keep-ing output high in a bid to drive out competi-tors, such as US shale oil, is doing enough yet to change market fundamentals.

“The real bearish change is OPEC produc-tion that has risen from 29.79 million barrels per day (bpd) last year to over 31 million bpd. I think this is the most signi� cant fundamen-tal change of the last 12 months,” said PVM oil analyst Tamas Varga.

US Energy Information Administration (EIA) data published this month shows that global petroleum oversupply, or production versus consumption, has more than doubled to 2.6 million bpd since the end of the second quarter last year.

“We’re not in the clear as far as the sup-ply-demand balance. In some ways, we think this whole situation is getting worse,” said Vikas Dwivedi, global head of oil and gas

strategy at Macquarie.And more oil may yet come to the market.Major powers and Iran are trying to agree on

a nuclear compromise by the end of the month that could allow a lifting of sanctions that have reduced Iran’s crude exports to under 1 million bpd, down from 3 million bpd in 2011.

Should Iranian oil return before the end of the year, traders said that would prevent a seasonal drawdown in stocks that usually happens in the fourth quarter, preventing a re-balancing of the market.

Don’t bet on chinaHow the market develops towards the end of the year and into 2016 will also depend heavily on China. Its oil imports have held near record highs for over six months as its gasoline de-mand soared on a surge of new cars and as the government built up its strategic oil reserves.

And while some analysts believe China’s demand will remain strong, there are signs that its thirst for oil is slowing as the world’s second-biggest economy grows at the slowest pace in decades. l

A gas pump is seen hanging from the ceiling at a petrol station in Seoul REUTERS

OECD urges global � nance reforms to � ght inequalityn AFP, London

The OECD called Wednesday for � nancial sec-tor reforms to combat inequality and lift eco-nomic growth in developed nations.

The Organisation for Economic Coopera-tion and Development, a policy body com-prising 34 advanced economies, cited data stretching back 50 years in a key report un-veiled in the British capital.

“Reforms to make the � nancial sector more stable can be expected to boost long-term economic growth and improve income equality,” read the OECD study entitled “Fi-nance and Inclusive Growth”.

The Paris-based OECD said the sector would make a “healthy contribution” to “strong and equitable growth” if it could “prevent credit overexpansion” and ensure “supervision of banks to maintain su� cient capital bu� ers”. l

Construction of Bangabandhu Airport again on the cards n Ishtiaq Husain

The government will restart the process of building ‘Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Interna-tional Airport’ soon that was stopped in 2011.

In this connection, the decision to engage reputed international consulting � rm has been taken to carry out the Detail Feasibility Study (DFS) of the proposed project work.

Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), the regulatory body for all aviation activities in the country, has invited tenders from international consulting � rms.

Civil Aviation & Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon told the Dhaka Tribune that they want to restart the process of constructing Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib International Air-port as soon as possible.

“Tender has been � oated. After complet-ing the detail feasibility study, we would start main construction works,” he said. Feasibility study will be implemented by the Civil Avia-tion Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB).

The government intends to construct the new airport with a view to creating an avia-

tion hub in the country, and meeting the de-mand of future growth in aviation industry, Menon said.

The existing infrastructure facilities of the main gateway of the country, Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, are insu� cient to meet the future air tra� c demand of the country and there are some limitations to expand the airport, he said.

A CAAB o� cial said in order to prepare a short list of consulting � rms for the construc-tion work, interested reputed international consulting � rms have been invited to provide information in sealed envelopes, indicating that they have experience in similar opera-tions and are quali� ed to perform the work.

The sale of expression of interest (EOI) form starts at 15:30hrs on July 8 while the closing timeline and date for submission of applications is 12hrs of July 9.

The international consulting � rms having 15 years of experience in consultancy services are eligible for EOI application.

The selected � rm will carry out the feasi-bility study, site selection, master planning,

architectural and engineering designs of in-ternational airport with capacity to meet the projected growth of the aviation sector and handle code 4F aircraft like B747-8F, B777-300 ER, Airbus 380 etc or larger.

“We have started our works in accordance with the government directives,” said Air Commodore Mosta� zur Rahman, member (Planning & Operation) of CAAB.

An o� cial of CAAB said primarily, the Civ-il Aviation & Tourism Ministry has selected Char Janajat under Shibchar Upazila in Ma-daripur district, Keyain and Latobdi under Shirajdikhan Upazila in Munshiganj district and Char Bilashpur under Dohar Upazila of Dhaka district for the airport.

There will be constructed three runways while the length of the proposed airport run-way would be 14,500 feet.

The building of airport will require 8,000 acres of land while the estimated timeline for construction will be 10 years with a cost of Tk50,000 crore.

The project will be implemented under Public-Private Partnership. l

NTC jetties operation: Saif Powertech technically eligible n Tushar Hayat, Chittagong

The evaluation committee yesterday found Saif Powertech technically eligible to oper-ate two jetties of the New-mooring Container Terminal (NCT) of the Chittagong Port, which was constructed more than seven years back.

The company o� ered Tk49.64 crore for operation of the jetties for next two years, the Chittagong Port Authority sources said.

The committee members will sit at another meeting to � nalise the evaluation report.

The company will handle 7.014 lakh units of container in two years at the jetties as per the condition of the tender schedule.

The same company had competed solely to operate two other jetties of the terminal.

Commodore Zul� kar Aziz, convener of the evaluation committee, could not be reached over mobile phone despite repeated attempts; however, a member of the committee, prefer-ring not to be named, con� rmed the message.

CPA sources said two other companies, MH Chowdhury Shipping owned by Chittagong Mayor AJM Nasir Uddin and A and J Trad-ers owned by lawmaker Ekramul Karim of Noakhali competed with the Saif Powertech to get the job.

The project was implemented involving Tk582 crore in December, 2007 while the ten-der procedure for the appointment of opera-tor was initiated on August 11 in 2008.

On July 2009 the authorities sold out ten-der schedules to four foreign companies which were found pre-quali� ed.

However, the process was postponed in February 2010 as the shipping ministry decid-ed to re-invite pre-quali� cation tender.

CPA sources said one of the pre-quali� ed companies � led objection to the Central Pro-curement Technical Unit raising question regarding the transparency of the procedure when the CPTU in 2012 issued order to sus-pend the tender procedure.

The authorities had taken fresh initiative to operate the terminal after nullifying the earlier tender procedure on May 8 in 2014 as the court vacated the stay order. l

BUSINESS 17D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

BoE warns of spillover risks from global rate risesn Reuters, London

Bank of England policymakers warned this month Britain could be a� ected when other countries start to raise interest rates, but that the outlook for British rates hinged on domes-tic in� ation.

Wednesday’s minutes of the BoE Monetary Policy Committee’s meeting ending June 3 showed all nine members voted to hold in-terest rates at 0.5%, although as in previous months, two members described their deci-sion as “� nely balanced”.

MPC members noted that headwinds to global growth had started to ease, meaning that some countries would likely start to nor-malise monetary policy. Many economists expect the United States to raise interest rates later this year.

“These policies could have international spillovers,” the minutes said.

“However, the Committee agreed that the path for UK monetary policy would depend

on the prospects for in� ation in the United Kingdom and would not be determined by the actions of other central banks.”

June’s minutes dropped references in pre-vious months to a “range of views” about the likely path of British interest rates, and the MPC said the economic outlook had changed little over the month.

Consumer spending was the main topic of discussion this month, with some members surprised that low oil prices had not had a bigger impact.

Other members said the impact was likely to come later and could build over time.

The MPC also said that some mortgage rates had hit a record low.

“In this context, the Committee noted that the tools available to the Bank’s Financial Policy Committee and other regulators were the � rst line of defence against any � nancial stability risks that might arise in the housing market,” the minutes said.

British in� ation turned positive again in

May after dipping below zero in April for the � rst time in 55 years, suggesting the country’s � irtation with de� ation was only brief.

Last week MPC member Ian McCa� erty said the time for raising interest rates was get-ting closer, and economic data over the next few months would help determine exactly when that will be.

The BoE has focused more on wage growth as it considers when to start raising rates. Data due to be released at the same time as the minutes on Wednesday are expected to show earnings growth picked up in the three months to April.

Last month, BoE Deputy Governor Mi-nouche Sha� k said she saw “encouraging” signs from labour market data, adding that her main motive for voting to keep rates on hold was the risk that the e� ects of the � nancial crisis might be more permanent than thought.

A Reuters poll published on Monday sug-gested the BoE will probably not raise interest rates until early next year. l

Pedestrians walk past the Bank of England in London REUTERS

Ramadan rush brings business windfall to Londonn AFP, London

Inside an upmarket London department store a genteel Middle Eastern woman glides by, trailing � owing robes and the distinctive smell of oud, a perfume popular with Arab women.

Outside, petrol fumes � ll the air and mo-tors roar, as young Arab men rev the engines of some of the world’s most expensive cars at a stop light.

Welcome to London’s Ramadan rush, when thousands of wealthy Arabs descend on the British capital in the weeks before and af-ter the Muslim fasting month, packing hotels and fuelling a shopping frenzy.

“It’s a prestige thing. This is a place to show o� your wealth, supercar or your clothes. You want to go where you’ll be seen, and London is where all the Arabs are,” said Fahad al-Ajmi, a 32-year-old Kuwaiti.

“I know Kuwaitis who take out loans just to come to London and show o� . How crazy is that?”

Qatari shoppers spend an average £1,432 ($2,237, 1,992 euros) per transaction - the top amount among Middle Eastern visitors - closely followed by tourists from the United Arab Emirates at £1,120.

‘Part of the retail calendar’Premium department stores and top brands have been quick to accommodate Britain’s most well-heeled shoppers.

At Selfridges the number of women wearing hijabs almost outnumbers other customers.

The premier London department store is one of several to adjust opening hours or spe-cially train sta� to serve Arab customers.

Global Blue, which provides British shops and hotels with cultural training, has a list of Dos and Don’ts. Among those: Do address the oldest man when speaking to a group. Don’t give them a thumbs up -- the gesture is inter-preted in some Arab countries as obscene.

The company says Middle Eastern con-sumers are the top-spending foreign shopper group in Britain, representing 32% of total in-ternational outlays to date this year, with Ku-wait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE occupying four of the top � ve national spending slots.

Ramadan, which follows the lunar calen-dar and ends with the Eid al-Fitr celebration, this year starts on Thursday, with many Gulf Arabs holidaying before or after to stock up on gifts and out� ts and escape searing tempera-tures back home.

“Much like the January sales and Christmas rush, Middle Eastern visitors celebrating Eid are now part of the retail calendar for many luxury brands,” said Dave Hobday, managing director of Worldpay UK, a payment process-ing company.

London, with its extensive transport links, global language, relative proximity, mild cli-mate and historical ties to Gulf states, has become the destination of choice for many Ramadan tourists.

Several Gulf countries were former British protectorates, and their citizens have for dec-ades come to London to shop, study, receive medical treatment and invest, most promi-nently in the city’s booming property market. l

China says to step up investment to support economyn Reuters, Beijing

China will step up “e� ective investment” in key sectors, including shantytown renovation and rural power infrastructure, to support growth, the cabinet said, even as it saw more positive factors in the economy.

The government will increase investment in transforming shantytowns and dilapidated houses, as well as boost investment in rural

electricity infrastructure and grain storage fa-cilities, the State Council said after a regular meeting.

The government will implement a three-year plan to renovate 18 million dilapidated urban houses and 10.6 million dilapidated ru-ral houses, it said late on Wednesday.

“In order to continue to respond e� ective-ly to the downward pressure, advancing to resolve structural problems, we should seize

the favorable opportunity of lower raw ma-terials prices to develop ‘bottlenecks’”, the cabinet said.

“Currently, positive changes in the econo-my are increasing.”

More investment will be channeled into modern logistics, and urban transportation while the construction of water conservan-cy and railway projects will be quickened, it said. l

BUSINESS18DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY

Sector DSE CSE TotalMillion Taka % change Million Taka % change Million Taka % change

Bank 181.30 4.46 8.53 2.68 189.83 4.33NBFI 81.23 2.00 3.73 1.17 84.97 1.94Investment 24.88 0.61 1.24 0.39 26.13 0.60Engineering 610.44 15.01 54.34 17.06 664.78 15.16Food & Allied 281.51 6.92 8.62 2.71 290.14 6.62Fuel & Power 499.38 12.28 34.54 10.85 533.92 12.17Jute 5.52 0.14 0.00 5.52 0.13Textile 580.86 14.28 62.18 19.52 643.04 14.66Pharma & Chemical 642.30 15.79 32.98 10.36 675.28 15.40Paper & Packaging 20.97 0.52 2.93 0.92 23.89 0.54Service 197.76 4.86 19.12 6.00 216.87 4.94Leather 23.76 0.58 7.35 2.31 31.11 0.71Ceramic 76.69 1.89 1.94 0.61 78.64 1.79Cement 167.05 4.11 11.79 3.70 178.84 4.08Information Technology 50.47 1.24 2.39 0.75 52.86 1.21General Insurance 18.70 0.46 0.57 0.18 19.28 0.44Life Insurance 79.68 1.96 7.36 2.31 87.04 1.98Telecom 159.43 3.92 15.23 4.78 174.66 3.98Travel & Leisure 191.96 4.72 24.77 7.78 216.72 4.94Miscellaneous 173.52 4.27 18.79 5.90 192.31 4.38Debenture 0.08 0.00 0.06 0.02 0.14 0.00

Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net

News, analysis and recent disclosuresPRAGATILIF: The Company has informed that the Board of Directors has decided to purchase a land measuring area of 17 kathas (approximately) at 416/1, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1215 at a cost of Tk. 34.00 crore (approxi-mately) subject to prior approval from Insurance Development & Regulatory Authority (IDRA).BRACBANK: Credit Rating Agency of Bangladesh Limited (CRAB) has informed that the surveillance rating of BRAC Bank Ltd. as ‘’AA2’’ in the long term and ‘’ST-2’’ in the short term based on audited � nan-cial statements of the Company up to 31 December 2014 and other relevant quantitative as well as qualitative information up to date of rating declaration.Dividend/AGMASIAINS: 10% cash, AGM: 11.07.2015, Record Date: 23.06.2015.LAFSURCEML: 5% interim cash. Record date for entitlement of interim dividend: 02.07.2015.DELTALIFE: 20% cash dividend, AGM: 21.06.2015, Record Date: 02.06.2015.FAMILYTEX: 10% stock divi-dend,EGM & AGM: 07.08.2015, Record Date: 09.07.2015.KPCL: 40% cash, AGM: 25.06.2015, Record Date: 31.05.2015.BDWELDING: 5% stock dividend AGM: 25.06.2015, Record Date: 09.06.2015.NBL: 10% stock dividend, AGM: 14.09.2015, Record date: 30.08.2015.ORIONPHARM: 15% cash divi-dend, AGM: 28.06.2015, Record Date: 21.05.2015.ISNLTD: No dividend, AGM:

28.06.2015, Record date: 16.06.2015.PURABIGEN: 15% stock dividend, AGM: 30.07.2015, Record date: 07.06.2015. JANATAINS: 10% stock dividend, AGM: 25.07.2015, Record Date: 21.05.2015. AMBEEPHA: 28% cash dividend, AGM: 14.06.2015, Record Date: 25.05.2015. ISLAMIINS: 5% cash and 10% stock, AGM: 13.06.2015, Record Date: 19.05.2015.NCCBANK: 10% stock dividend, AGM: 24.06.2015, Record Date: 18.05.2015.PEOPLESINS: 13% cash dividend, AGM: 09.06.2015, Record Date: 18.05.2015.LEGACYFOOT: 5% stock, AGM: 13.06.2015, Record Date: 14.05.2015. UNIQUEHRL: 20% cash dividend, AGM: 25.06.2015, Record Date: 24.05.2015. WATACHEM: 5% cash and 25% stock dividend, AGM: 20.06.2015, Record Date: 14.05.2015. ARAMITCEM: 10% cash dividend, AGM: 13.06.2015, Record Date: 13.05.2015. GOLDENSON: 12.50% cash dividend, AGM: 27.06.2015, Record Date: 14.05.2015. GQBALLPEN: 10% cash dividend, AGM: 25.06.2015, Record Date: 14.05.2015. SUMITPOWER: 10% cash and 5% stock dividend, AGM: 28.06.2014, Record Date: 17.05.2015. SPPCL: 25% cash dividend, AGM: 28.06.2015. Record Date: 17.05.2015. TAKAFULINS: 12% stock divi-dend, AGM: 25.07.2015, Record Date: 21.05.2015.

CSE GAINER

Company Closing (% Change)

Aver-age (%

Change)

Closin-gAvg. Closing DHIGH DLOW Turnover

in MillionLatest

EPSLatest

PE

Monno Ceramic -B 9.87 9.87 24.50 24.50 24.50 24.50 0.002 0.16 153.1Hakkani P& Paper -B 9.86 8.47 31.36 32.30 32.30 29.70 1.010 0.29 108.1Prime Islami Life -A 9.72 9.82 44.19 46.30 46.40 43.00 0.819 4.95 8.9Anwar Galvanizing-B 9.35 9.38 38.61 38.60 38.80 37.70 0.146 0.68 56.8Usmania Glass -A 8.98 6.82 106.76 106.80 107.80 102.00 0.223 -1.39 -veGQ Ball PenA 8.19 5.81 73.60 75.30 76.50 68.00 0.459 2.41 30.5ICB AMCL 2nd NRB -A 7.69 7.69 7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00 0.007 0.87 8.0Beach Hatchery -A 7.26 4.47 18.68 19.20 19.40 17.80 3.560 1.29 14.5Legacy Footwear -A 7.14 6.55 22.28 22.50 23.10 20.70 6.993 0.20 111.4Pioneer Insur -A 5.94 6.23 33.95 33.90 34.00 33.80 0.034 5.44 6.2

DSE GAINER

Company Closing (% Change)

Aver-age (%

Change)

Closin-gAvg. Closing DHIGH DLOW Turnover

in MillionLatest

EPSLatest

PE

Hakkani P& Paper -B 10.00 9.29 31.05 31.90 31.90 28.10 4.570 0.29 107.1Anwar Galvanizing-B 9.89 7.84 38.38 38.90 38.90 35.50 19.124 0.68 56.4Monno Ceramic -B 9.87 8.45 25.15 25.60 25.60 23.50 1.481 0.16 157.2National Tubes -A 8.85 8.85 106.96 108.20 108.70 101.80 15.883 -1.36 -vePrime Islami Life -A 8.18 7.58 46.27 47.60 48.00 43.40 19.938 4.95 9.3Asia Insur. Ltd.-A 8.02 5.80 17.32 17.50 17.80 16.00 5.969 1.10 15.7BD Fixed Income MF-A 7.41 7.79 5.81 5.80 5.80 5.70 0.061 0.51 11.4Legacy Footwear -A 7.08 4.21 22.04 22.70 23.20 20.60 11.959 0.20 110.27th ICB M F-A 6.02 6.02 88.00 88.00 88.00 88.00 0.010 9.73 9.0Beach Hatchery -A 5.52 4.17 18.73 19.10 19.30 17.60 22.291 1.29 14.5

CSE LOSER

Company Closing (% Change)

Aver-age (%

Change)

Closin-gAvg. Closing DHIGH DLOW Turnover

in MillionLatest

EPSLatest

PE

Kohinoor Chem -A -7.29 -7.29 315.20 315.20 315.20 315.20 0.032 8.25 38.2Standard Ceramic -A -6.49 -4.13 36.17 36.00 37.00 36.00 0.051 0.49 73.8Tosrifa Industries -N -6.32 -7.28 34.41 34.10 36.00 33.30 17.230 1.80 19.1Republic Insu.-A -5.45 -9.09 15.00 15.60 15.60 14.90 0.074 1.55 9.7H.R. Textile -A -5.34 -5.34 19.50 19.50 19.50 19.50 0.003 0.86 22.7ICB Sonali Bank 1 MF-A -5.00 -5.00 5.70 5.70 5.70 5.70 0.029 0.97 5.9Shurwid Ind. -N -4.46 -5.30 21.26 21.40 22.10 20.60 0.589 0.53 40.1PHP 1st M. F.-A -4.44 -1.82 4.32 4.30 4.50 4.30 0.178 0.71 6.1Dhaka Ins. Ltd.-A -4.00 -4.00 16.80 16.80 16.80 16.80 0.008 1.76 9.5Rahima Food -Z -3.95 -3.84 34.04 34.00 34.10 34.00 0.041 -0.47 -ve

DSE LOSER

Company Closing (% Change)

Aver-age (%

Change)

Closin-gAvg. Closing DHIGH DLOW Turnover

in MillionLatest

EPSLatest

PE

Samata LeatheR -Z -9.44 -9.44 16.30 16.30 16.30 16.30 0.015 -0.05 -veParamount Insur-A -5.34 -5.54 12.44 12.40 13.30 12.10 0.654 1.32 9.4Shurwid Ind. -N -4.98 -6.49 21.02 21.00 22.30 20.50 16.006 0.53 39.7Rahima Food -Z -4.67 -4.14 34.76 34.70 36.20 33.90 0.393 -0.47 -veUNITED AIR-A -3.85 -2.32 10.11 10.00 10.60 9.90 172.752 0.86 11.8National Tea -A -3.74 -3.74 654.55 654.60 660.00 650.00 0.072 -75.00 -veMidas Financing-Z -3.74 -100.00 0.00 10.30 10.30 10.20 0.000 -1.55 -veTosrifa Industries -N -3.64 -8.28 34.55 34.40 36.10 33.50 69.923 1.80 19.2SonarBangla Insu. -A -3.21 -1.99 15.29 15.10 16.20 15.00 0.607 1.52 10.1IFIL Islamic M.F.1-A -3.13 -3.41 6.23 6.20 6.40 6.10 3.545 0.95 6.6

DSE key features June 18, 2015Turnover (Million Taka)

4,067.48

Turnover (Volume)

112,994,183

Number of Contract

112,629

Traded Issues 313

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

151

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

155

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

7

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,533.92

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

30.71

CSE key features June 18, 2015Turnover (Million Taka)

318.48

Turnover (Volume)

11,103,170

Number of Contract

17,662

Traded Issues 240

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

107

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

125

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

8

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,458.45

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

29.80

BUSINESS 19D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Stocks inch down on pro� t booking n Tribune Report

Stocks closed marginally lower with volatility yes-terday, breaking three-day modest rise, as cautious in-vestors went for quick pro� t booking.

The market opened slightly higher in the � rst hour but eroded those gains afternoon trading, pulled down mainly by bank, ce-ment and telecommunica-tions sectors.

The benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX, edged down 7 points or 0.2% to 4,519.

The Shariah Index DSES was also down over 2 points or 0.3% to 1,101.

The comprising blue chips DS30 shed over 3 points or 0.2% to 1,742.

Chittagong Stock Ex-change (CSE) Selective Cat-egories Index, CSCX, settled at 8,452, falling 16 points.

Amid persistent volatile trade, volume of trade de-clined. The DSE turnover stood at more than Tk400 crore, down 9% over the previous session.

Tosrifa Industries, in its second trading day, fell 3.7% to Tk34.4 per share after rising more than 257% on debut.

Losers took a margin-

al lead over the gainers, as out of 311 issues traded, 129 gained, 141 declined and 42 remained unchanged.

LankaBangla Securities said the economic factors also kept sentiment under check.

The selling spree was active on large cap stocks, while small cap sectors managed to end green, it said.

Bank, cement, non-bank-ing � nancial institutions, power and telecommunica-tions sectors dropped.

Engineering sector gained highest 1.3%.

The pharmaceuticals and food and allied sectors end-ed slightly lower.

The United Airways was the most traded issue with shares worth over Tk17.3 crore changing hands.

It was followed by IFAD Autos, BSRM Limited, Bex-imco Limited, Khulna Power Company and Lafarge Sur-ma Cement. l

The selling spree was active on large cap stocks, while small cap sectors managed to end green

ANALYST

Daily capital market highlightsDSE Broad Index : 11178.38560 (-) 0.17% ▼

DSE - 30 Index : 1742.62379 (-) 0.20% ▼

CSE All Share Index: 13889.32140 (-) 0.29% ▼

CSE - 30 Index : 11178.38560 (-) 0.09% ▼

CSE Selected Index : 8452.41460 (-) 0.21% ▼

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS

Company Volume-Shares

Value in Million

% of Total-Turnover ClosingP Change % ClosingY DHIGH DLOW AvgPrice

UNITED AIR-A 2,267,524 22.92 7.20 10.00 -3.85 10.40 9.90 10.00 10.11BSRM Ltd. -N 268,010 20.13 6.32 75.10 3.59 72.50 76.80 72.00 75.12Tosrifa Industries -N 500,672 17.23 5.41 34.10 -6.32 36.40 36.00 33.30 34.41BEXIMCO Ltd. -A 434,961 14.25 4.47 32.80 -0.61 33.00 33.70 32.40 32.76SAIF Powertec-N 162,203 13.48 4.23 84.00 4.48 80.40 85.80 81.00 83.09FAR Chemical-N 234,003 10.34 3.25 44.40 1.83 43.60 44.70 43.00 44.21LafargeS Cement-Z 85,794 9.88 3.10 116.20 -1.61 118.10 117.50 114.30 115.18Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A 631,445 9.77 3.07 15.40 -0.65 15.50 15.80 15.20 15.47Grameenphone-A 28,106 9.23 2.90 327.90 -1.15 331.70 331.20 327.30 328.48WesternMarine -N 189,109 8.58 2.69 45.40 0.89 45.00 45.80 45.00 45.36United Power-N 46,918 7.38 2.32 156.70 -1.32 158.80 160.20 156.00 157.25Khulna Power-A 101,765 7.09 2.23 70.00 -1.13 70.80 72.00 69.00 69.69Zaheen Spinning -N 309,285 7.04 2.21 22.80 -0.87 23.00 23.50 22.20 22.78Legacy Footwear -A 313,825 6.99 2.20 22.50 7.14 21.00 23.10 20.70 22.28Keya Cosmetics -A 324,321 6.62 2.08 20.40 0.00 20.40 20.60 20.20 20.42

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS

Company Volume-Shares

Value in Million

% of Total-Turnover ClosingP Change

% ClosingY DHIGH DLOW Avg-Price

BATBCL -A 60,567 179.86 4.42 2920.00 0.24 2912.90 2970.00 2907.40 2969.54UNITED AIR-A 17,081,993 172.75 4.25 10.00 -3.85 10.40 10.60 9.90 10.11Square Pharma -A 673,888 171.67 4.22 255.50 0.91 253.20 256.40 252.90 254.74Ifad Autos -N 1,083,591 115.23 2.83 108.80 5.12 103.50 111.30 102.80 106.34BSRM Ltd. -N 1,515,772 113.89 2.80 74.80 2.75 72.80 76.90 73.20 75.14BEXIMCO Ltd. -A 3,441,069 112.75 2.77 32.80 -0.91 33.10 33.40 32.40 32.77Khulna Power-A 1,552,271 108.66 2.67 69.80 -1.27 70.70 71.80 69.00 70.00Grameenphone-A 319,053 105.14 2.58 328.50 -1.02 331.90 332.90 328.00 329.54LafargeS Cement-Z 868,119 100.67 2.47 116.10 -2.44 119.00 119.40 114.80 115.96Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A 6,472,302 100.41 2.47 15.50 -0.64 15.60 15.90 15.30 15.51SAIF Powertec-N 1,206,856 100.37 2.47 84.30 4.72 80.50 85.80 81.10 83.17SummitAlliancePort.-A 1,460,823 86.58 2.13 60.20 4.15 57.80 61.10 57.50 59.27FAR Chemical-N 1,942,577 85.90 2.11 44.50 2.06 43.60 44.80 43.50 44.22Beximco Pharma -A 1,317,281 75.23 1.85 57.60 2.86 56.00 58.20 55.80 57.11RAK Ceramics-A 1,003,584 72.70 1.79 72.40 0.14 72.30 73.70 71.70 72.44

‘The economic factors also kept sentiment under check’

BUSINESS20DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Immediate past FBCCI president Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed, also chairman of the Standard Bank board of directors, speaks at a Meet the Press in Hotel Sonargaon in Dhaka yesterday marking the 16th anniversary of the bank

Standard Insurance Limited has recently held its 15th annual general meeting in Dhaka. The company’s chairperson HTM Quader Newaz was present on the occasion among others

Pioneer Insurance gets new chairpersonn Tribune Business Desk

M Anis Ud Dowla has recently been elected as the chairperson of Pi-oneer Insurance Company Limited at the company’s 186th board meet-ing.

Dowla is the chairperson of ACI Group. He also served as president of MCCI, Dhaka and Bangladesh Employers Federation in several terms. l

Exporters urge govt not to raise tax at source n Tribune Report

Exporters and export-oriented m a n u f a c t u r e r s urged the govern-

ment not to increase tax at source in the up-coming � scal year as it could hamper indus-trial expansion of the country.

They also demanded withdrawal of pro-posed 1% tax on import of capital machinery for the export-based sector to encourage new investment needed to expedite growth.

The demands came at a post-budget press conference organised by the Exporters Asso-ciation of Bangladesh (EAB) at the BGMEA Bhaban in Dhaka yesterday.

In the proposed budget, the government has proposed raising tax at source for the RMG and other exporters to 1% for the � scal year 2015-16.

Currently, the apparel makers pay 0.30% tax at source, while the other export-oriented industries pay 0.60%.

“At present, all the export-oriented indus-tries have to run businesses facing several challenges and to overcome these challenges, it needs policy support from the government,” EAB President Abdus Salam Murshedy said.

To increase capacity of and expand all the export-oriented industries, tax at source needed to be kept at 0.30%, he said.

Salam said raising the tax at source would

slow down the growth of the export-based in-dustries.

Sha� ul Islam Mohiuddin, senior vice pres-ident of the Federation of Bangladesh Cham-bers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), called on the government to set tax at source at a rate which is essential for expansion of industries and to grab more share on the global market.

To achieve the $50bn export target by 2021, Bangladesh needs more production capacity and the government should concentrate on the issue, he said.

Sha� ul Islam said the proposed hike of tax at source would hurt the export potentiality as it would push up production cost.

If the proposed tax rate is implemented, the exporters would also lose competition on the global market due to resultant rise in pro-

duction cost, he said. FBCCI leader said the export-oriented in-

dustries were facing a number of problems due to devaluation of euro against dollar.

He said the three-month long political un-rest also dampened the business of the ex-port-oriented industries as supply chain was disrupted.

Acting president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association Na-siruddin Ahmed Chowdhury, vice presidents Reaz Bin Mahmood and Kamrul Islam Khan, president of Bangladesh Terry Towel and Lin-en Manufacturers And Exporters Association Khandkar Abdul Muktadir and president of Bangladesh Garments Accessories and Packag-ing Manufacturers and Exporters Association Rafez Alam Chowdhury were also present. l

BGMEA election on September 8 n Tribune Report

Biennial election of the board of directors of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Ex-porters Association (BGMEA) will be held on September 8.

The decision was taken at a board meeting held on June 9, said BGMEA vice president Reaz Bin Mahmood.

After the meeting, the election commis-sioner Jahangir Alamin announced the elec-tion schedule.

According to the schedule, the BGMEA members are asked to pay annual subscrip-tion and other dues by July 9 and submit vot-er nomination letter by July 12 to make them-selves eligible for enrollment as voter.

The last date for submission of the nom-inations for the posts of director is August 3 while the polls for the term 2015-16 will be held on September 8.

The election will pick a total of 35 directors through direct voting by the BGMEA mem-bers. Of them, 26 will be from Dhaka zone and the rest from Chittagong zone.

As per the election guideline, the elect-ed directors will select president and four vice-presidents. Of four vice-presidents, three will be elected from Dhaka zone and one from Chittagong zone.

To contest the election, two panels- Sham-milito Parishad and Forum- already selected their leaders.

Shammilito Parishad nominated Siddiqur Rahman while Forum picked Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu as panel leaders to vie for the elec-tion of the association for next two years.

The tenure of the existing board was ex-tended twice by the commerce ministry to update voters’ list.

BGMEA was supposed to announce elec-tion schedule by December 2014 for holding the polls in March 2015. l

NBR to install software to solve pending casesn Tribune Report

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) plans to introduce a software called ‘Digital Suit Management System’ in all the � eld o� ces to monitor the tax-related cases pending at the courts for speedy disposal of the cases.

Once introduced, the system will also help the government to recover the unpaid reve-nue from across the country.

Currently, around 23,000 cases are pend-ing in di� erent courts involving around Tk26,000crore revenue from income tax, customs duty and Value Added Tax (VAT), ac-cording to NBR data.

The current system is not capable enough to monitor and resolve the huge number of cases that resulted in the rise of pending cases, which has halted collection of huge amount of revenue, according to a NBR press

release issued yesterday.In this regard, NBR o� cials yesterday held

a meeting at its headquarters to discuss about the introduction of the online software titled ‘Digital Suite Management System’, which will be introduced in all its tax zones, custom houses and commissionerates.

With NBR Chairman NojiburRahman in the chair, the meeting was attended by most of its top o� cials including its members FaridUd-din (customs) and Hussain Ahmed (custom export and bond).

The meeting has formed a committee head-ed by NBR memberHussain Ahmed to conduct a feasibility study on the use of the proposed software within seven working days.

Addressing the meeting, NojiburRahman said: “NBR is working hard for establishing a taxpayer-friendly, business-friendly and a service-oriented organisation to implement

the government’s vision to achieve “Vision 2021 and 2041.”

“If the software is introduced, it will help speedy disposal of the pending cases, which will ultimately reduce the number of pending cases and will help boost the revenue collec-tion,” he added.

ADR yet to get momentumDespite repeated attempts and initiatives, the NBR is yet to get any momentum in the Alter-native Dispute Resolution (ADR) system that was introduced in 2012 to resolve the tax-re-lated disputes and ensure a win-win situation for both the taxmen and taxpayers.

The NBR introduced the mechanism to en-courage the taxpayers to settle disputes out-side the court as it was failing to monitor and resolve the cases pending at courts, said an o� cial of NBR. l

EAB President Abdus Salam Murshedy addresses a press conference in the city yesterday RAJIB DHAR

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Th esweet life

22Tantalise George’s La Dolce Vita

24Listology Types of health conscious people in Bangladesh

INSIDE

Photo: Baizid Haque Joarder

news

Discover warm Arabian hospitality with the richness of traditional Arabian bu� et spread at Water Garden Brasserie of Radisson Blu Dhaka Water Garden. Feast on a choice of Arabian treats and beverages along with local delicacies during the holy month of Ramadan. Also savour the sumptuous iftar takeaway treats too. For reservations please call +88029834555, Ext: 8811.

Arabian Treasure of Ramadan at Radisson Blu Dhaka

Photos: Baizid Haque Joarder

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news

Aarong Bangladesh’s leading lifestyle brand has opened its 14th and 15th outlets recently in Dhanmondi and Banani. The Dhanmondi outlet was inaugurated by Senior Director of BRAC Enterprises Dr Tamara Abed while the Banani outlet was inaugurated by BRAC’s Executive Director Dr Muhammad Musa. Chief Operating O� cer of Aarong Md Abdur Rouf and senior management o� cials of BRAC and Aarong also present on the occasion.l

Aarong opens new outlets in Dhanmondi and BananiThis Ramadan Westin’s signature restaurant “Seasonal Tastes” has come up with a refreshing iftar o� er that is followed by dinner. This is the � rst time they are o� ering iftar followed by dinner at Splash. Eclectic drinks such as the blueberry and chia seed smoothie, rose and pomegranate granita as well as classic dishes such as Khaas Kadak Sheek Kebab, Masala Kheema Struddle, � avourful Nehari and Hydrabadi double ka meetha will be on o� er too. This ramadan The Westin Dhaka awaits for you

with the best o� ers of the town!

The Westin Dhaka’s ramadan o� er

George’s La Dolce VitaThe good, the bad and the sweet

n N Anita Amreen

A cross between rustic and high � ying, George’s La Dolce Vita strives to provide a modern take on Italian fare. Inspired by New York’s bustling Italian scene, there are more elements of New York than of Italy in this unpretentious, charm-soaked joint. Although they do not o� er absolutely authentic, home-cooked Italian, their New York inspired take on Italian favourites will give you reason to step right in and take a tasting of dishes served by owner and chef George himself. With barely a few months since its conception, they’ve been quietly winning positive reviews for their beautifully plated pastas and creative appetisers. What really takes the cake (no pun intended), is the in-house bakery that serves some of the best desserts you can � nd around town. By best, we really, truly mean, the best. Whether you try the out-of-control Triple Chocolate Cookie or a lusty plate of red velvet cake, you will have your mind blown.

Perfect for any time of the day, you can prop in for a late lunch or even an intimate dinner, as the place has the kind of vibe that simply wins you over. The menu consists of simple Italian staples (pastas, pizzas, appetisers) and an extended menu of desserts. All fairly priced, this is just the spot if you’re looking for quality eats that don’t really abuse your pocket.

Read on to � nd out which dishes to try, which to brave through and which ones to dive into. Buon appetito!

A few favourites that deserve to be devoured time and again

Pollo In Un Cesto Tk280 4.5/5Boneless chicken with mushroom cream sauce in a crispy potato basket

If there’s only one thing you want to try, you MUST try the Pollo In Un Cesto. As if we weren’t sold on the idea of a dreamy mix of boneless chicken and shitake in mushroom cream sauce, in came the potato basket. Essentially a Chinese-inspired nest, the basket is made with deep fried, shredded potato strips. The cream is dense and the mix such an exquisite example of creamy perfection, you can’t help but to go for several mouthfuls. Add to that the potato crust and you’ve got a recipe for a never ending hogfest.

Red Velvet Skyscraper Tk280 4.5/5Six layers of red velvet cream cheese

This towering red velvet stays true to its promise - it really is six generous layers of red velvet with just the right amount of cream cheese frosting. For Tk280 or more, you can easily say there isn’t another restaurant that does a better Red Velvet. Yes, you’ve read that right. Apart from a few select online bakeries, nobody does a red velvet as well as they do. This beauty is just intensely moist and so tender, you think you can’t go for seconds but you’ll want to. The layers are harmonious, thanks to the light � u� of cream cheese and the

measured sweetness of cocoa.

Carrot Heaven Tk225 4/5Carrot cake, spices, cream cheese frosting, where the good carrots go when it’s their time

Despite being a generally underrated choice for cake, La Dolce Vita’s carrot cake is a class above the rest. It’s somewhere in between being a heavy, dense cake and a too-light � u� fest. This one’s moist, yet light enough to enjoy with just a wink of ginger � avour. Topped o� with lush cream cheese frosting, this one’s a winner too.

Triple Chocolate Cookie Tk150 5/5A pure chocolate experience

Cookies are just plain ol’ cookies unless they are George’s Triple Chocolate Cookie. For a cookie with such an unassuming name, you’d be fooled to believe it’s just another run-of-the-mill chocolate cookie. Even one look at it will have you thinking the same. However, all it takes is one bite. One bite and you’ll suddenly realise that every other chocolate cookie you had was just a lie. This cookie is everything you want a triple chocolate cookie to be - baked to perfection on the outside with a lusty, intense chocolately centre inside. One that just melts to your touch. One moment you’re cherishing every crumbling bite, next you’re licking o� the gorgeous chocolate mess. The taste is so dark, you’ll be lifted to the ultimate heights of a

dangerous chocolate coma. Approach with caution.

Torta Di Crema Di Banana Tk170 4.5/5Banana cream pie with ginger crumb topping

This banana cream pie is a sensation - whether you like pies (or not), whether you loathe bananas (or don’t) - this cream pie will change the way you feel about any other banana dessert you’ve tried. The pie is lightly sweetened but is incredibly lush and smooth. Every bite is thick but light, with soft banana peaks meshing right in with the beautifully done crust. Even the ginger crumb toppings add to the � avour and make you fall, and fall hard.

Perfection Cake Tk225 4.5/5The loveliest vanilla cake with chocolate ganache frosting

If you want to love one thing about George’s, you’ll love how their menu never lies. If a cake is called “Perfection Cake,” they are giving you perfection cake, we kid you not. Once you try this vanilla cake you will � nally realise why people who enjoy vanilla cake, enjoy vanilla cake. It’s moist and dense, for a while you don’t even care for the chocolate ganache frosting because the cake alone is so good - and that is something you wouldn’t normally expect to happen since chocolate is usually the king of all things sweet.

Devour it

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FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

*All prices are exclusive of 15% VAT

George’s La Dolce VitaHouse 96, Road 11, Block C, Banani, Dhaka

Dhaka, BangladeshPh: +8801872-444477

The ultimate middle ground for all things worthy of at least one tasting session

Gaberetto Fra Diavolo Tk750 3/5Shrimp sauteed in spicy tomato sauce served on a bed of spaghetti

The Gaberetto Fra Diavolo is, again, like most of their items, a New York version of an Italian dish. It’s essentially a spicy shrimp dish in tomato sauce. Their version is far, far more diluted but de� nitely packs a devilish chili punch that is not meant for the light-hearted. We’d probably enjoy this dish better if the sauce had been thicker, and the spaghetti less limp. Overall, it’s an okay dish that you may try on occasion or ask for a re-order

with a thicker sauce.

Lasagna pizza Tk500 (small) Tk 700 (large) 3.5/5House specialty with Bolognese sauce, bechamel sauce, ricotta

If you’re going to combine the powers of a good bolognese sauce, bechamel and ricotta, and throw it into a well priced pizza - you can hardly go wrong. Although this is not the ultimate Italian pizza, it certainly takes inspiration from an Italian favourite. The crust, mind you, is upsettingly not on the thin side but that doesn’t take much from the pizza itself since they’re riding on the virtues of a really, really well made bolognese sauce.

Try it

Dishes that often hit the spot and then don’t

Pesce pizza Tk550 (small) Tk750 (large)Fish olives, preserved lemon, arugula, basil, ricotta, bechamel sauce (no tomato sauce)

The pesce pizza is one that isn’t meant for just about every palette.

It’s a creamy � sh pizza with plenty of ricotta. Quite a bit on the plain side, there’s nothing wrong with the pizza but there isn’t anything going well for it either. The crust too, is on the slightly thicker side. However, despite these shortcomings, we do applaud them for braving a dish that combines such risky ingredients as � sh, bechamel and arugula.

Brave it

Beverages that refresh

Arnold Palmer Tk120Iced tea, lemonade and mint

One of the best iced lemon teas out there - the Arnold Palmer is a drink that is consistently perfect. The recipe is a tad di� erent from that which we’re used to but in an entirely good way. It’s a drink you’ll be lusting for, for days after you’ve tried it. It’s that good.

Minted Lemonade Sunset Tk150Minted lemonade with an accent of watermelon juice

The Minted Lemonade Sunset is a refreshing beauty of a drink that looks quite like a sunset. There’s the gorgeous lightness of watermelon matched, half and half, with lemonade that is spiked with mint. The ultimate summer drink.

Gulp it

ListologyT-JUNCTION24DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

LISTOLOGY

n Tasnia Khandaker

Buckets of ghee have transitioned to just a teaspoon of vegetable oil as people in our country are starting to make healthier choices for themselves. Without further ado, here are eight types of health enthusiasts you might have crossed paths with, sometimes when you were paying just enough attention, and sometimes when you really didn’t have to.

The calorie calculatorsThese people not only deprive themselves of unhealthy, heavenly food, they make sure everyone who indulges in a little junk food lovin’ feels exceptionally horrible afterwards. “Did you know that the medium sized bread stick you’re chewing on has about 40 calories? 40! I can smell fat in the air!” Even though their intention might not be wrong, you catch yourself wanting to shove a sock in their mouths. Tough love.

The oversized belliesThese are the people who, despite enough e� ort, have not been able to cross any threshold head-� rst. Their gigantic bellies beat them at their game, winning the walking race every single time. They have been

advised by physicians to regularly exercise and are forced into being more health conscious but somehow always end up failing miserably.

The aspiring SchwarzeneggersSquats, deadlifting, push-ups, cardio, etc. You name it. They’ve mastered it all. Exercise is to them what Nutella is to us commoners. They chug down protein in a way that puts a hungry lion to shame. It’s all about having that desired ripped body. Posting half naked sel� es on their timeline also happens to be one of their traits. To them- “Gym is Life, Life is Gym.”

The plannersThese people have so many marks and post-it notes on their calendars, you can hardly see what year it is. They give themselves pep talks for hours, emphasising on the necessity of working out and eating right, only to � nd another set of excuses. If they claim that they’re going to be hitting the gym tomorrow, you can very well be certain that tomorrow isn’t showing up for a year or two.

The seasonals Are those wedding bells I hear? Is there a must-look-fabulous event coming up soon?

Time to get the exercise game on! These people visualise their goal and do anything and everything to achieve it. In the months leading up to the big event, words like carbs are wiped clean from their dictionary. That Kareena Kapoor lahenga has to fit! The fitness gurus’ speeches are their mantras, but only up until the function. As soon as they have accomplished looking oh-so-fine for the pictures, it’s a half an hour drive to the nearest burger joint.

The weight gainers When we read or talk about health issues, most of the time, it has to do with losing that extra bit of fat. For these lucky people, it’s the opposite. Their prescription involves getting fatter and getting more flesh on the bones. Imagine someone saying - “Can I have the biggest burger you have? My doctor asked me to eat it. Twice a day.” You haven’t really grasped the true meaning of envy, until you meet one of these.

The maniacs You’re walking about in the supermarket and you think your maniac sister has gone to buy a mango bar, but little do you know that she has fainted over at aisle 4. The

maniacs think that they are being health conscious, but in reality they end up doing more damage than good. Eating healthy involves “eating”- they seem to forget that. Starving themselves for days not only keeps them on edge, it makes things difficult for the people around them as well.

The whinersThese people are healthy, fit, and well. Everyone can see that but themselves. They are blind to their perfection and make people want to murder them. They constantly nag and complain about themselves. They fill their tummies with extra cheese toppings but never fail to yell out “NO SUGAR” while asking for tea, because apparently they are on a “special” diet. If you’ve saved up for an exclusive moment to roll your eyes, this is it. Unleash your inner eye-rolling animal within you, because the whiners are here. l

Types of health conscious people in Bangladesh

news

Health-nuts listed according to type

This Ramadan, Kaymu.com.bd, Bangladesh’s leading online shopping community is joining hands with four notable charitable organisations to make the act of Zakat simpler for those who want to pledge. In partnership with Jaago Foundation, Teach for Bangladesh, Charity Right and One Degree Initiative, Kaymu has launched a dedicated Zakat page through which anyone can contribute their Zakat to the four partner organisations.

And all anyone has to do is click a button. Throughout the campaign, Kaymu Zakat page will display “bundles” of products that consumers can choose from, including clothing, stationery and books. Consumers can then select customised

bundles/products to donate to any of the four participating organisations. Once the consumer clicks “buy now,” the product will then be delivered directly to the relevant organisation. Kaymu will then pick up the consumer’s contribution. The products listed have been sourced in consultation with the charities and will help them realise their respective mandates. The campaign was initiated during an event at the Kaymu Bangladesh o� ce in Banani recently.

Quazi Zulquarnain, Deputy Country Manager for Kaymu Bangladesh said: “Our aim is to make the act of Zakat simpler for everyone. A lot of people want to donate and we are ensuring that they can do so without any inconvenience. Now

you can just sit at home and click ‘buy now’ to provide clothes to a needy family or stationary for a poor child in need of education.”

Kaymu’s “Zakat Made Easy” campaign

seeks to provide a platform for Zakat givers to connect with creditable organisations working with the less fortunate and contributing to their bene� ciaries with meaningful, relevant products. l

Kaymu making zakat easier

Photos: Bigstock

25D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

AGUERO ALLAYS SHOULDER INJURY WORRIES

26 2827

Big-serving German Sabine Lisicki blasted 27 aces in her second round Birmingham triumph over Belinda

Bencic on Wednesday, a new record for a WTA tournament

27 ACES!

SportTHE DICTATING SOUTHPAWS

BFF KEEPS FAITH WITH DE KRUIF, SCHWEICHLER

Musta� zur’s � rst roarn Minhaz Uddin Khan

Left-arm paceman Mus-ta� zur Rahman, who became the 118th cricketer to repre-sent Bangladesh in one-day internationals, almost struck gold o� his very � rst delivery in 50-over cricket.

Making his ODI debut against India yesterday in the � rst game of the three-match series, Musta� zur, who came in as a surprise element, almost did the trick as he pinned opener Rohit Sharma in front. It was not only the left-armer who appealed vociferously to the umpire. The packed Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium crowd also erupted in unison only to be turned down by the umpire.

Among many others, the whole passage of play was witnessed by former Bangladesh paceman Mahbubul Alam. Mahbubul, who brie� y featured for the national side, was sitting in the over-� ow area of the Media Centre.

“The � rst roar is always special and for a debutant, it is something more. It gets you both nervous and at the same time charged up,” said Mahbubul to this correspon-dent.

The 31-year old promptly shared his ODI debut expe-rience, against Zimbabwe in 2009.

“Mirpur was packed and I opened the bowling for Bangladesh. The roar from the stands was immense. It had literally dried up my throat. That is an experience to remember for the rest of my life,” said Mahbubul, who believes Musta� zur has experienced the same. l

WHEN JOY KNOWS NO BOUNDS: Bangladesh left-arm paceman Musta� zur Rahman (C) is the toast of his teammates following his magical � ve-wicket haul on debut against India in the � rst ODI at SBNS yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Fortune favours the brave, says captain Mashrafen Reazur Rahman Rohan

Musta� zur Rahman’s dream debut was just the icing on the emphatic 79-run victory Bangladesh achieved over India yesterday. The rookie seamer bagged � ve wickets for 50 runs as Bangladesh’s four-man pace attack took the world champions down in the � rst match of the series.

19-year old Musta� z arrived at the post-match conference yesterday � anked by his skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza, who later revealed that it was not a hunch but he was “con� dent” of the left-arm pacer doing well in this sort of wicket.

Musta� z, who idolises Pakistani fast bowl-er Mohammad Aamer, might have been a brave man out in the � eld but international cricket is still new to him and thus, he was more shy than anyone expected him to be.

“It was my � rst one-day and I was very happy that it was against a big team like India. I took � ve wickets and all were very satisfy-ing,” said Musta� zur.

He thanked his elder brother (third among four) without whom yesterday’s achievement would not have been possible.

“I lived in Satkhira and the place where I practised was 44km away from the prac-tice venue. Everyday at 7pm, my elder brother, Mokhlesur Rahman, used to take me there and it is due to him that I came thus far.”

Musta� z made the Indian world-class bats-men dance with his “cutter” deliveries, which Mashrafe described, “spun more than the spinners.”

“One day at the nets during our Under-19 practice, [Anamul Haque] Bijoy bhai asked me whether I can bowl cutters.

I said I never tried but I de� nitely can. That very day, I tried to bowl cutters and it went very well. Even Bijoy bhai was getting out o� my cutters.”

Mashrafe said they planned on playing Musta� z and he gave away the new ball to him believing he would do well. The four-man pace attack was a really planned com-bination as he also felt that Arafat Sunny was unlucky in missing out.

“Sunny is a really good bowler, especial-ly in these conditions. He was unlucky to be left out to be honest. Since I became the captain I always preferred three pace bowlers and this time, as I said, Musta� z is a bit of a di� erent bowler. He has variations and his stock ball is very di� cult to play in these con-ditions.

“It was a big decision, but fortune favours the brave,” Mashrafe added. l

Sport26DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

The dictating southpawsn Reazur Rahman Rohan

When rain made its � rst entry at Sher-e-Bang-la National Stadium, Bangladesh were already 119 for one in 15.4 overs courtesy of the dic-tating partnership between openers Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar. The commanding duo racked up their second hundred-run opening stand in just their fourth innings to give the Tigers a roaring start in the � rst of three one-day internationals against India before rain halted proceedings for around an hour yesterday evening.

The four-innings old southpaw combina-tion is proving to be successful for Bangladesh as they appear to complement each other perfectly. Although a silly run-out broke the stand, by then Soumya had already made 54 o� 40 balls and Bangladesh 102 in 13.4 overs.

The last ODI Soumya played he had an un-beaten 127 beside his name against Pakistan and it was important for him to carry the mo-mentum here, given that he had experienced a dismal Test outing recently. Tamim, in the meantime, recovered from his traumatic World Cup in emphatic style, notching two centuries in the same series against Pakistan in April and the question of him being consist-ent was also answered through his resolute 62-ball 60.

The onslaught started in the sixth over when Tamim tore apart quickie Umesh Yadav for three fours and a six. He was lucky to get the � rst boundary o� an edge that raced under Shikhar Dhawan at � rst slip, but followed it up with two more breathtaking boundaries with a slice over point and a straight pull towards the mid-on region before he danced down the track to send the ball over the cover ropes.

Once the tempo was set there was no look-ing back as Soumya in the next over struck Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s length balls twice for four.

MS Dhoni, playing three seamers, was forced to introduce o� -spinner Ravichan-

dran Ashwin in the eighth over as the home side had already posted an e� ortless 55 on the scorecard. However, the slow-down tac-tics hardly kept Tamim and Soumya quiet as the latter took on Ashwin and maintained the � ow of runs.

Soumya reached his half-century with a six o� Ashwin over midwicket before his enter-

taining knock came to an end with a Suresh Raina direct hit from approximately 10 yards out as Tamim hesitated twice to leave his partner at no man’s land.

Tamim crossed his � fty just before the rain interruption and lost his way in the 11th ball after resumption when he lofted Ashwin straight to long-o� . He made 62 o� 60 balls. l

Top 3 opening stands for BD v IndiaPartners Runs Ground YearSoumya, Tamim 102 Dhaka 2015Kayes, Tamim 80 Dhaka 2010Javed, Tamim 78 Dhaka 2007

79 balls in which Bangladesh reached 100 runs, their fastest against any top-8

team. Their fastest against any team is 73 balls (v ZIM, 2005)

6.4 overs (40 balls) in which Bangladesh reached 50, their 2nd-fastest against

India. Their fastest is 30 balls (Dhaka, 2011)

5 instances of both Bangladesh openers mak-ing 50+ scores against a top-8 team - twice v

IND, twice v PAK and once v NZ

Last 4 innings partnership between Tamim and Soumya48 v Pakistan 17 April 201522 v Pakistan 19 April 2015145 v Pakistan 22 April 2015102 v India 18 June 2015

BANGLADESH R BBAN v IND, 1ST ODI

Tamim Iqbal c Rohit b Ashwin 60 62Soumya Sarkar run out 54 40Litton Das lbw b Ashwin 8 13Mush� qur Rahim c Rohit b Ashwin 14 19Shakib Al Hasan c Jadeja b Yadav 52 68Sabbir Rahman b Jadeja 41 44Nasir Hossain c Jadeja v Yadav 34 27Mashrafe Mortaza c Rohit b Sharma 21 18Rubel Hossain c Sharma b Kumar 4 5Taskin Ahmed c Kohli b Kumar 2 5Musta� zur Rahman not out 0 0Extras (b2, lb6, w6, nb3) 17Total (all out, 49.4 overs) 307

Fall of wickets:1-102 (Sarkar), 2-123 (Tamim), 3-129 (Das), 4-146 (Ra-him), 5-229 (Sabbir), 6-267 (Shakib), 7-282 (Nasir), 8-286 (Rubel), 9-298 (Taskin), 10-307 (Mortaza )BowlingKumar 7-0-37-2 (nb1, w1), Yadav 8-0-58-2 (w1), Ash-win 10-0-51-3 (w2), Sharma 4.4-0-53-1(nb1), Raina 10-0-40-0, Jadeja 8-0-48-1(nb1), Kohli 2-0-12-0 (w2)

R. Sharma c Mortaza b Musta� zur 63 68 S. Dhawan c Rahim b Taskin 30 38V. Kohli c Rahim b Taskin 1 4A. Rahane c Nasir b Musta� zur 9 25S. Raina b Musta� zur 40 40M. Dhoni c Rahim b Shakib 5 7R. Jadeja c Sarkar b Musta� zur 32 42R. Ashwin c Rahim b Musta� zur 0 1B. Kumar not out 25 21M. Sharma c Rahim b Mortaza 11 19U. Yadav lbw b Shakib 2 11Extras (lb4, w6) 10Total (all out, 46 overs) 228

Fall of wickets1-95 (Dhawan), 2-101 (Kohli), 3-105 (Rohit), 4-115 (Rahane), 5-128 (Dhoni), 6-188 (Raina), 7-188 (Ash-win), 8-195 (Jadeja), 9-219 (Sharma), 10-228(Yadav).BowlingMusta� zur 9.2-1-50-2 (w1), Taskin 6-1-21-2 (w5), Mortaza 10-0-53-1, Rubel 6-0-36-0, Nasir 6.4-0-31-0, Shakib 8-0-33-2Result: Bangladesh won by 79 runsSeries: Bangladesh lead three-match series 1-0Toss: Bangladesh

INDIA R B

Bangladesh openers Tamim Iqbal (L) and Soumya Sarkar congratulate each other following their 100-run stand against India during the � rst ODI at SBNS yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

KEY NOTES: BANGLADESH v INDIA, 1ST ODIThe surprising XIBangladesh named four genuine seamers in their playing XI and the decision took the majority by surprise. Habitually a spin-dependant team, even playing only one fast bowler in the recent Test, the decision was certainly the talk of the town. The decision of not playing even one specialist spinner paid rich dividends as the pacemen accu-mulated eight wickets between them.

The opening standsFor Bangladesh, Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar’s rapid 102-run partnership ensured they would go on to cross the 300-mark despite the fall of quick wickets. In the case of India, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma added 95, making sure they had a nice launchpad for their steep chase.

Mushfiq’s turnaround Over 8.5 and Mush� q dives low to his left in order to pounce on Dhawan’s edge o� the � rst Rubel Hossain over. The ball de� ects o� his gloves and reaches the third-man boundary fence.

Over 9.2 and this time Mashrafe bin Mortaza is the unlucky one. Mush� q drops an inside edge of Dhawan, on 17. The umpire even raised his � ngers, thinking the catch was taken, only to cancel the

call later. Mush� q however, more than made it up for them later, grasping as many as � ve catches.

Dhoni’s muscular push to see off the danger!India were reeling at 123 for 4. Debutant Musta� zur Rahman had just removed Rohit and Ajinkya Rahane. The visitors were � nding the left-arm seamer a tough puzzle to solve but it took one push from Dhoni’s bulwark of a body to shake o� the lanky rookie. While taking a single, Dhoni shrugged o� Musta� z, which could have been easily avoided, on his way to a run, resulting in the bowler walking o� the ground with the physio. However, Dhoni only lasted an over more as Shakib had the veteran caught behind for � ve.

Mashrafe passes the baton to fresh bloodMashrafe made his ODI debut in 2001 and has played 152 matches for Bangladesh, claiming 194 wickets. During the course of his stop-start career which was often blighted by injury, yesterday was only the � fth instance of the right-arm seamer coming on as a change bowler. Instead, he let debutant Musta� z and Taskin Ahmed take the charge. The last time he bowled as a change bowler was back in 2007 in Bangalore when he featured for the Asia XI against Africa XI.

Dhoni hurt but not shockedn Reazur Rahman Rohan

India captain MS Dhoni was “hurt” with the loss but not “shocked” as he believes Bangla-desh are a good side and they have been play-ing good cricket in the past two years.

“Right from the start, they took our bowl-ing on and they were successful. Not that we bowled badly but they put pressure on our bowlers. At the end, 300 was a good score and our batting was not up to the mark,” Dhoni told the media at the post-match press con-ference following the 79-run loss against the Tigers in the � rst ODI in Mirpur yesterday.

When asked if the Indian side were caught o� guard and taken by surprise by the four-man pace attack strategy of Bangladesh, Dho-ni said, “I feel it was the execution. It was important to have wickets in hand when we were chasing 300 in this sort of a wicket and the left-arm seamer bowled really well and the others supported him. I am a big fan of saying take the game to the end. Even when [Suresh] Raina and [Ravindra] Jadeja were batting, the di� erence wasn’t much but in the end wickets fell frequently.” l

Sport 27D

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FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

Dempsey awaits fate after ripping up ref’s bookClint Dempsey’s bout of ref rage could see the USA captain miss the Gold Cup, if US Soccer determine his ripping up of a referee’s note-book warrants a three-month ban. Dempsey was sent o� after snatching referee Daniel Radford’s notebook and tearing it up in extra time of his Seattle Sounders’ 3-1 loss to bitter regional rivals Portland in the fourth round of the US Open Cup on Tuesday.

AFP

Costa Rica goalkeeper Navas out of Gold CupCosta Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas will miss the CONCACAF Gold Cup with an in� amed left Achilles tendon, coach Paulo Cesar Wanchope said on Wednesday. The Real Madrid keeper, who shone at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, aggravated the sore tendon during Costa Rica’s 2-1 defeat by Spain in a friendly last week.

Reuters

Aston Villa sign Richards from Man CityAston Villa have signed former England defender Micah Richards from Manchester City on a free transfer, the Premier League club said on Wednes-day. Richards, 26, has agreed a four-year contract and will move to Villa Park on July 1. The right back helped City win the Premier League title in 2012 but rarely played for the � rst team under current manager Manuel Pellegrini and was loaned to Italian Serie A side Fiorentina last season.

Reuters

Arsenal’s Wilshere � ned for inciting commentsArsenal mid� elder Jack Wilshere has been � ned 40,000 pounds ($63,000) and warned about his future conduct, the FA said on Wednesday. Wil-shere admitted a charge of making inciting com-ments during Arsenal’s open-top bus celebration following their victory in last month’s FA Cup � nal.

Reuters

Star striker Gignac set for Mexican switchFrench international striker Andre-Pierre Gignac is on the verge of a surprise transfer to Mexican club Tigres of Monterrey after coming to the end of his contract with Ligue 1 giants Marseille. The 29-year-old, who has scored � ve goals in 21 appearances for Euro 2016 hosts France, is set to undergo a medical with the cash-rich Tigres.

AFP

England, South Korea, Colombia reach last 16France got their Women’s World Cup campaign back on track Wednesday with a 5-0 rout of Mexico as England, South Korea and Colombia also grabbed last 16 berths on the � nal day of group games. The third-ranked French had been among the tournament favourites before falling to a shock 2-0 defeat to Colombia in their second game. But they delivered in style in their third match, becoming the quickest team to score three goals in the tournament’s history to � nish top of Group F.

AFP

QUICK BYTES

Afusi takes charge of Sheikh Jamaln Raihan Mahmood

Nigerian coach Joseph Afusi, who guided Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club to the Bangla-desh Premier Football League title last sea-son, returned to his old den yesterday.

The defending champions decided to dis-pense with the services of Afusi from the be-ginning of this season and appointed Maruful Haque, who guided Sheikh Jamal to King’s Cup glory in Bhutan. Maruf was at the helm till the end of the � rst phase of the BPFL but

the club authorities sacked him with Sheikh Jamal at the top of the points table.

Afusi, who played for Sheikh Jamal for two seasons four years ago, was assigned to train the club in the upcoming season. Afusi last worked with Indian club Churchill Brothers.

“I am happy to return at Jamal. I will start full-� edged training from today (yesterday). I don’t know the � tness level of the players and it would be my � rst priority as I more or less know the skill level of the players,” said Afusi. l

Aussie manager arrives to inspect facilitiesn Raihan Mahmood

Australia manager Joel Francis Freeme arrived in Dhaka yesterday to inspect the football in-frastructure and facilities of Bangladesh.

“Although the Australian cricket team has been a regular visitor to Bangladesh, the foot-ball team is not. We want to see the football infrastructure and have a look at the other fa-cilities,” said Freeme.

Bangladesh will take on Australia on Sep-tember 3 in Perth before hosting the Soc-ceroos on November 17. l

BFF keeps faith with De Kruif, Schweichlern Raihan Mahmood

Bangladesh Football Federation, in its bid to continue the improvement of the national side, yesterday retained the services of Dutch trainer Lodewijk de Kruif and German goal-keeping coach Christian Schweichler till next January.

The national teams committee and the two foreign coaches sat in a meeting at BFF House and the concerned parties agreed on the terms. In accordance with the agreement, De Kruif will continue with his assignment-based contract while Schweichler will continue to train the national goalkeepers and others till the end of the next Bangabandhu Gold Cup, scheduled to be held in Dhaka next January.

De Kruif will now � y back to the Nether-lands and return on August 1 to prepare the national side for the 2018 Fifa World Cup sec-ond round quali� er against Australia on Sep-tember 3 at NIB Stadium, Perth.

Schweichler however, will stay at the cap-ital and work with the national custodians. BFF has extended the boundary of his re-sponsibilities as he will now train the talented goalkeepers outside the national side as well as the intern goalkeepers of the BFF’s Syl-het-based Academy.

De Kruif appeared happy with the develop-ment. “The scenario says BFF has the faith on me to develop the game and I am also moti-vated to do the same. We must look forward and our aim is to win the SAFF Champion-ship, scheduled to be held next December,” said De Kruif. l

Federer cruises past Gulbis into last eight at Hallen Reuters, Berlin

World number two Roger Federer comfort-ably beat Latvian Ernests Gulbis 6-3 7-5 on Wednesday to move into the last eight of the Halle Open where he will meet Germany’s Florian Mayer.

The 17-times grand slam winner, prepar-ing for Wimbledon’s grass courts, got his � rst break when Gulbis sent a forehand long to go 4-2 up. He easily held serve to bag the � rst set.

The pair traded blows in the second set before Federer again broke Gulbis with the

world number 86 double faulting at 5-5.The defending champion, who has won

the tournament seven times, � red a forehand winner on his � rst match point to set up a quarter-� nal meeting with the German.

Czech Tomas Berdych, the third seed, also advanced, beating Croatian teenager Borna Coric in straight sets, losing just two points on his � rst serve in the entire match.

Ivo Karlovic also booked a last eight spot with a 6-7(5) 6-3 6-3 victory over German Al-exander Zverev. Second seed Kei Nishikori is in action on Thursday against Dustin Brown. l

Sport28DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

GROUP CBrazil 0-1 Colombia Murillo 36

1 2

341. Brazil’s Neymar (10) kicks the ball into Colombia’s Pablo Armero after the referee � nished their � rst round Copa America match at Estadio Monumental David Arellano in Santiago, Chile, on Wednesday. Colombia won the match 1-0

2. Neymar is pushed by Colombia forward Carlos Bacca after the incident

3. Referee Enrique Osses shows a red card to Colombia’s Carlos Bacca

4. Brazil’s Neymar (L) leaves the pitch as he receives a red card from referee Enrique Osses REUTERS/AP

Aguero allays shoulder injury worriesn Reuters, La Serena

Sergio Aguero trained normally on Wednes-day, dispelling fears he damaged his shoulder when diving to head the only goal in Argenti-na’s 1-0 win over Uruguay at the Copa America.

The striker held his shoulder in pain after scoring his second goal of the tournament in the 55th minute of Tuesday’s match at La Ser-ena, and again when he was substituted, but it turned out to be no more than a knock.

The win put Argentina joint top of Group B with Paraguay on four points after two match-es with Uruguay a point behind them. Coach Gerardo Martino will have to sit out next match after being handed a one-match suspension. l

Neymar goes from Barca hero to Brazil zeron Reuters

A little under two weeks ago Neymar netted the goal that wrapped up Barcelona’s Cham-pions League triumph against Juventus but his needless sending o� at the Copa America on Wednesday means the Brazil forward may have played his last game at the tournament.

Neymar was shown a red card at the end of their 1-0 Group C defeat to Colombia after he became involved in scu� es between the

South American rivals and will miss Sunday’s match against Venezuela and probably at least one more game.

The 23-year-old had earlier been booked for a handball and he complained afterwards that he was being victimised by match o� -cials and criticised Chilean referee Enrique Osses, who also dismissed Colombia forward Carlos Bacca after the melee.

“They have to use the rules against me,” Neymar told reporters. “The ball hit me on the

hand unintentionally and I got a yellow.“This is what happens when you put in a

weak referee. There was a misunderstanding but there was no need to send everyone o� . I didn’t even see that he had expelled me.”

The defeat was Brazil’s � rst in 12 matches and the � rst game coach Dunga had failed to win since taking over following the 2014 World Cup � nals.

It left Colombia and Brazil tied at the top of Group C on three points along with Venezue-

la, who have played one game fewer and meet Peru later on Thursday. Neymar admitted he had a poor game against Colombia but said he was con� dent his team mates would get the result they needed against Venezuela and seal a place in the last eight.

“I admit we were not good and that I did not play well,” he said. “I take full responsibility.”

Neymar had a superb second season at Barca, helping the Catalan giants win a treble of Cham-pions League, La Liga and King’s Cup titles. l

Argentina players sit as striker Carlos Tevez (R, front) walks during a training session in La Serena, Chile on Wednesday. Argentina will play against Jamaica on June 20 in their Group B match REUTERS

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Silva, Sangakkara defy Pakistan in � rst Testn AFP, Galle

Sri Lanka’s opener Kaushal Silva frustrat-ed Pakistan with an unbeaten 80 when the rain-hit � rst Test � nally got underway on the scheduled second day in Galle on Thursday.

Veteran Kumar Sangakkara chipped in with 50 to leave the hosts on 178 for three at stumps after Pakistan captain Misbah-ul Haq elected to � eld � rst on an easy-paced pitch.

After inclement weather had washed out the entire � rst day’s play on Wednesday, just 64 overs were bowled on the second day after a wet out� eld delayed the start by two hours at the Galle International Stadium.

Left-handed Dimuth Karunaratne scored 21 in an opening stand of 30 with Silva when he was dismissed by left-arm seamer Wahab Riaz in the 13th over of the innings.

Karunaratne attempted to pull a short ball, but only managed to edge a catch to wick-et-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed to provide the tour-ists a much-needed breakthrough.

Silva and Sangakkara teamed up to add 112 runs for the second wicket, batting through

the post-lunch session to take their team to a comfortable 123 for one by tea.

Sangakkara, Test cricket’s current leading run-getter who is expected to retire during the home series against India in August, hit two boundaries and a six. l

Vidal loses license, stays in Cup after crashn AFP, Santiago

Chilean football star Arturo Vidal made a tear-ful apology Wednesday after he saw his driv-er’s license suspended for crashing his Ferrari while driving under the in� uence, but he re-mained on the national team.

After spending the night in jail, the Juven-tus mid� elder appeared in court in Santiago, where the judge freed him from custody but suspended his license and ordered him to re-port to the Chilean consulate in Milan every month under the terms of his release.

Vidal collided with another car late Tues-day as he and his wife, Maria Teresa Matus, returned from a night out at a casino. l

Captain Morgan � res record run chasen Reuters

Classy centuries from captain Eoin Morgan and Joe Root propelled England to a sev-en-wicket victory over New Zealand in the fourth one-day international in Nottingham on Wednesday to square the pulsating � ve-match series at 2-2.

Chasing a huge target of 350 for victo-ry, Morgan’s swashbuckling 113 o� 82 balls and a more measured 106 not out from Root helped England chase it down with six overs to spare.

It was England’s highest successful run chase in one-day internationals.

A battling 90 from Kane Williamson and half centuries from Grant Elliott and Martin Guptill had helped the tourists reach 349-7, but Alex Hales got England o� to a � ying start with a quick� re 67 before Morgan and Root took over.

A remarkably high-scoring series will now be decided in Durham at Chester-le-Street on Saturday.

“It’s certainly up there with one of the best games of cricket I’ve ever played in. The boys showed that aggressive intent right from the get-go,” Morgan told the BBC.

Brendon McCullum won the toss and chose to bat with New Zealand making steady pro-gress before Williamson came to the crease at 88 for one.

He pushed New Zealand’s score past 200 in another century partnership with Ross Taylor (42), passing 3,000 ODI runs in the process.

Williamson fell 10 runs short of a second consecutive century after he mistimed a drive and was caught by Adil Rashid.

Mitchell Santner smashed 44 o� 19 balls, including 28 o� Rashid’s penultimate over, as

New Zealand posted an imposing total with a late boundary barrage.

But a new-look England side, enthused with aggressive intent, swiftly set about chip-ping away at the target.

Hales got the hosts o� to a � ying start, smashing 67 o� 38 balls, before he dragged on trying to heave Matt Henry down the ground and fellow opener Jason Roy (38) followed soon after to leave the hosts on 111 for two.

Morgan and Root swiftly restored the mo-mentum, however, with the captain racing to his eighth ODI hundred o� 73 balls before he was caught by Henry at � ne leg with England closing in on victory on 309 for three.

Ben Stokes arrived at the crease to help Root reach three � gures, before England swiftly wrapped up proceedings.

It was a dispiriting result for New Zealand captain McCullum, who was con� dent his side had done enough with their batting.

“It was an incredible run chase,” he said.“We knew they were going to have to play

well to beat us and play well they did. They blew us o� the park again.” l

Sony SixCopa America 20153:00AMMexico v Ecuador5:30AMChile v BoliviaTen Action4:00PM WTA: Aegon Birmingham ClassicQuarter� nals 8:00PM ATP: Gerry Weber Championships Quarter� nalsTen Cricket10:15AM Pakistan Tour of Sri Lanka 20151st Test, Day 3 Star Sports 110:30PM Natwest T20 Blast 2015Gloucestershire v Somerset Star Sports 42:00PM F1: Red Bull Ring Spielberg Austria Practice Sessions

DAY’S WATCH

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

SLvPAK, DAY-2SRI LANKA 1ST INNINGS R BD. Karunaratne c Sarfraz b Wahab 21 42K. Silva not out 80 197K. Sangakkara c Younis b Wahab 50 106L. Thirimanne c Babar b Hafeez 8 17A. Mathews not out 10 26Extras: (lb4, nb4, w1) 9Total (for three wickets, 64 overs) 178

Fall of wickets1-30 (Karunaratne), 2-142 (Sangakkara), 3-154 (Thirimanne).

BowlingJunaid Khan 12-4-24-0, Riaz 15-2-51-2 (nb4, w1), Zul� qar Babar 15-4-32-0, Yasir 15-2-43-0, Hafeez 7-0-24-1

Toss: Pakistan

l England passed 300 for the fourth succes-sive ODI. They had not done it before in more than two games in a row

l England’s previous highest aggregate num-ber of runs scored in a � ve-match series was 1,399. They already have 1,425 with a game to come

l Joe Root and Eoin Morgan’s 198 was Eng-land’s second highest ODI stand for the third wicket, behind Neil Fairbrother and Graeme Hick’s 213 versus West Indies in 1991

l It was also their highest ODI stand against New Zealand for any wicket

BRIEF SCORENew Zealand 349 for 7 (Williamson 90, Elliott 55*, Guptill 53) England 350 for 3 (Morgan 113, Root 106*, Hales 67)

England won by seven wickets

England skipper Eoin Morgan hits a six during their fourth ODI match against New Zealand in Trent Bridge on Wednesday REUTERS

DOWNTIME30DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

CALVIN AND HOBBES

PEANUTS

DILBERT

How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no number repeating.

CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS

CODE-CRACKER

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a di� erent letter of the alphabet. For example, today 20 represents Z so � ll Z every time the � gure 20 appears.You have one letter in the control grid to start you o� . Enter it in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares.Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.As you get the letters, � ll in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check o� the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

CROSSWORD

ACROSS1 Water lily (5)4 Fragrant ointment (4)7 Top airman (3)8 Corded fabric (3)9 Neckwear (5)12 Equipment (4)13 Soup dishes (7)15 Arid (3)16 Narrow beam (3)18 Place for pigs (3)19 High mountain (3)21 Fruit tree’s � ower (7)24 Colour (4)26 Family member (5)27 Plant juice (3)28 Permit (3)29 Water pitcher (4)30 Greek letter (5)

DOWN1 Final (4)2 Mysterious (7)3 Lacerate (4)4 Seeks charity (4)5 Monkey (3)6 Full of cheer (5)10 Blushing (3)11 Wild (5)14 Thermoplastic product (5)17 Long-legged shorebird (6)18 Prized fur (5)20 Greek letter (3)21 Carry (4)22 Vend (4)23 Pre� x – among (4)25 Employ (3)

SUDOKU

SHOWTIME 31D

TFRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

WHAT TO WATCH

Dawn of the Planet of the ApesStar Movies 6:30pm

Dawn of the Planet of apes is a sequel to the 2011 release Rise of the Planet of apes. The plot is set ten years after the devastating wrath of the simian � u has wiped most of humanity. Caesar and his group of genetically developed apes are now threatened by the survivors of the � u who are determined to dominate. Cast: Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman.

GodzillaHBO9:00pmGodzilla is 2014 science � ction movie featuring a prehistoric alpha predator called Godzilla. Godzilla battles two MUTOs (Massive Unidenti� ed Terres-trial Organism) to save humanity.Cast: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen. Despicable Me 2Star Movies10:48pmThe animated movie Despicable Me 2 shows villain-turned-good-guy Gru embark on a mission to � nd the villain who stole the highly potent mutagen PX41 with undercover agent Lucy Wil-de. He later discovers his minions are disappearing and unveils what has hap-pened to them.Cast: Steve Carell, Pierre Co� n, Kristen Wiig, Russell Brand.

CELEBS ON SOCIAL

Mindy Kaling @mindykaling I love @ConanOBrien and I think it’s so cool he did a photo shoot with an Ewok.

Jacqueline Fernandez @Asli_Jacqueline Meanwhile... At Pilates.. @namrat-apurohit you are a monster #pilates #cadillac #core… https://instagram.com/p/4DrG0kIpyx/

Kendall Jenner @KendallJenner RT @EsteeLauder: Could she be any more stunning? @KendallJenner in red 4 #ModernMuse Le Rouge before the #TFFAward

n Showtime Desk

Moushumi is set to play the lead in Maya, a � lm is scheduled to go on the � oor at the end of July. Directed by Ashutosh Sujon, the � lm has been awarded with � nancial, technical and logistic support by the Bengal Cinema Development Forum, an initiative of Bengal Foundation to promote aspirant � lmmakers.

Although no written agreement has been made regarding her role, a source close to the production house revealed that the Nation-al Film Award winning actress has already talked about her role and she con� rmed that she will be starring in the � lm.

The � lm depicts the immaterial part of people’s interpersonal relationships and ex-presses how the lack of materiliasm is a no-tion that is slowly decaying. The director, who previously made his im-pression working for small screen cinema, worked as the assistant director to Mostafa Sarwar Farooqi’s Mad_e In Bangladesh and Bachelor. He stated, “I chose an inclusive sto-ry which represents a vital part in people’s re-lations, hoping that the audience will love it.”

As the � lm is set to be his directorial debut, Ashutosh further stated that the audience are going to experience a lot of new exciting ele-ments. l

n Showtime Desk

The 8th Limelight Film Awardstook place on Monday, June 15 2015. 500 � lm makers, media personalities and industry professionals descended in East London’s Troxy for the Limelight Film Awards, which identi� es 12 new and emerging � lm makers each year and o� ers the Film of the Night Award, a £10,000 production award to one of the winners.

This year’s Film of the Night Award was won by the � lm Maybe, directed by John Grey and the award was received by the lead actress Zoe Weldon who was chu� ed and said “such an amazing little � lm to have won the award.”

Successfully running since 2008, the � lm awards was set up by founder and CEO Munsur Ali, a writer, producer and director from London. He stated, “We felt that enough isn’t being done to recognise emerging � lm makers and that’s why the team and I do what we do, to give them that much needed platform.”This year’s guests included Alex Zane (Sky Movies Specials, � lm journalist - Fast & Furious 7, Avengers: Age of Ultron), Philip Bloom (Award winning � lm maker / DOP, Lucas Films etc), Gemma Mor-ris (Sky News), Kierston Wareing (East-enders), Silvio Simac (Hollywood actor – Transporter 3, Unleashed), Martin Gooch (Harry Potter, Judge Dredd), Ella Jade (Apprentice), Karen Bryson (Shameless)

and was presented by Kat Boyce (MTV Base, Choice FM) and ITV’s Melissa Na-thoo.

A special visit was also made by the newly elected Mayor of Tower Hamlets, John Biggs on his � rst day in o� ce, who co-presented the � lm of the night award. “An awful lot of great things in this country start of in the East End of London, that’s what I want us to be proud of,” the Mayor commented.

Since 2008 the Limelight Film Awards has identi� ed many new � lm talents who have progressed to producing feature � lms, programmes and new production companies. “Limelight is unique in providing that much needed platform for new and emerging � lm makers. Running since 2008, our programme demonstrates the need of the awards and the abundant talent out there,” says Founder and CEO Munsur Ali, a � lm maker himself. l

Moushumi to play for Maya

8th Limelight Film Awards concludes

Sunsilk Shundorjo Kotha recently brought in singer Mehreen as a guest. Presented by Nova, Mehreen shared and discussed tips on beauty and fashion. Along with this, audience were also be able to � nd out insider tips on skincare, beauty and fashion. The show was aired at 9:05pm on Bangla Vision. The show is produced by Rehana Raha. l

Sunsilk Shundorjo Kotha starring Mehreen

BACK PAGE32DT

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2015

MUSTAFIZUR’S FIRST ROAR PAGE 25

MOUSHUMI TO PLAY FOR MAYA PAGE 31

ICAB: INCREASED INVESTMENT, GOOD GOVERNANCE KEY TO 7% GROWTH PAGE 15

First MERS case con� rmed in Thailandn AFP, Bangkok

Thailand yesterday said a 75-year-old man from Oman was con� rmed to have MERS in Southeast Asia’s � rst case of the virus since an outbreak in South Korea that has killed 23 people.

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) has spread at an alarmingly rapid pace in South Korea since the � rst case was diag-nosed on May 20, infecting 165 in what is the largest outbreak outside Saudi Arabia.

Thailand, a booming medical tourism hub popular with Middle Eastern patients, an-nounced its � rst positive MERS case yesterday after around 20 people earlier tested negative for the virus.

“(The man) is from a Middle Eastern coun-try. The (test) results con� rmed that he has Middle East Respiratory Syndrome,” said Rajata Rajatanavin, Thailand’s Public Health Minister.

“The patient had arrived in the kingdom with his family three days ago.”

A Thai government spokesman later told reporters the man was from Oman and had travelled to a central Bangkok hospital for treatment for a heart problem.

After being tested for MERS he was moved to Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Insti-tute in Nonthaburi province on the outskirts of the Thai capital on yesterday morning.

Authorities are looking for people who were on the same � ight as well as anyone else who came in contact with the man during his time in Bangkok.

“We are con� dent that we can control the outbreak,” said spokesman Major General Sunsern Kaewkamnerd in a statement.

““Disease control” measures were in place, including monitoring the health of his three family members.”

Earlier yesterday World Health Organisa-tion chief Margaret Chan expressed guarded optimism over South Korea’s ability to con-tain a MERS outbreak after the WHO previ-ously described the spread of the disease as a “wake-up call”.

Under control“Our current assessment of the MERS situation in South Korea... is the government is now on a very good footing,” she told reporters.

“The situation does not constitute an inter-national public health emergency.”

“The MERS outbreak will be brought under control... although it may take a little longer than everyone would like to see,” said Chan, who is in South Korea for a previously sched-uled conference.

She said that the government had admitted it got o� to a “slow start” but that its e� orts strengthened “very quickly and systemically and very signi� cantly”, resulting in a decline in new cases.”

The good news is that scientists have not de-tected any genetic change in the virus, she said.

Chan’s comments came as South Korea’s health ministry reported three more deaths and three more cases, despite authorities say-ing earlier in the week that South Korea had weathered the worst of the crisis.

The WHO said Wednesday that a lack of awareness about the virus among health workers and the public was a major contribut-ing factor to its rapid spread.

According to an earlier WHO statement MERS cases have been reported in four Asian countries before Thailand – China, South Ko-rea, Malaysia and the Philippines – since the virus � rst surfaced in Saudi Arabia in 2012.

More than 6,700 people are currently being held in quarantine in South Korea in a bid to halt the spread of the virus. l

Japan’s humanoid robot ‘Pepper’ set to hit storesn AFP, Tokyo

Japan’s SoftBank yesterday said its chatty human-oid robot Pepper would go on sale this weekend, as it announced a deal with China’s biggest e-com-merce website Alibaba and a Taiwanese manufac-turer to work on robotics technology.

The deal came as local media said Alibaba was trying to attract Chinese consumers to the wise-cracking robot, which is already being used to sell co� ee machines and greet customers at a Japanese bank.

Standing 120-centimetres (four-foot) tall, the robot has a human-like face perched on top of a white plastic body, with rollers and what looks like a tablet computer on its chest.

Unveiled last year, Pepper – which its maker says can read human emotions – sells mobile phones at SoftBank’s outlets, where it has been

used to collect customers’ opinions.Engineers claim the robot’s arti� cial intelli-

gence can understand most conversations – in Japanese – and will beef up its language abilities by listening to what customers say.

Pepper goes on sale in robot-crazy Japan this weekend for 198,000 yen ($1,600).

SoftBank released few details of the deal with Taiwan’s Foxconn and Alibaba – in which it owns a one-third stake – beyond saying both would invest in the robotics unit with each taking a 20 percent share for a combined $237 million.

Foxconn, a major supplier to Apple, said it would manufacture the robot while Alibaba disput-ed reports that it plans to sell the robot in China.

“There are no immediate plans for China sales, but SoftBank, Foxconn and Alibaba will possibly cooperate on this front in the future,” a company spokeswoman said. l

Myanmar envoy summoned over border � ringn Sheikh Shahariar Zaman

The Foreign Ministry has summoned Myan-mar Ambassador in Dhaka Myo Mint Than to protest a border shooting incident and abduc-tion of a Border Guard Bangladesh soldier by Myanmar’s border force.

Border Guard Bangladesh member Biplob received bullet wounds and BGB Naik Razzaq, along with his sub-machine gun, was abduct-ed by Myanmar’s Border Guard Police in the Naf River near the Jadimura area of Teknaf border in Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday morning.

This is the second such incident to take place since the Myanmar authorities abol-ished its Nasaka force in July 2013 and de-ployed the Border Guard Police.

It is also the second time the Myanmar ambassador has been summoned this month.

On June 5 he was summoned to hear Bangla-desh’s protest against Myanmar for propagan-da regarding the Rohingya and Bangladesh.

“We asked that Naik Razzak be released immediately,” said an o� cial of the Foreign Ministry.

The ambassador said Myanmar’s BGP opened � re because they mistook BGB men for robbers, the o� cial said.

“The ambassador called a Myanmar o� cial from the meeting and asked Myanmar author-ities to expedite the release of the BGB soldier held captive,” he said.

According to a BGB press release issued in Dhaka on Wednesday, a seven-member BGB team was patrolling the area from the Jadimu-ra canal to the Dumdumia border outpost in two boats.

The BGB team was conducting routine pa-

trols in civil boats, when suddenly, around 5:30am, a BGP boat appeared and opened � re on one of the BGB boats, injuring one Bangla-deshi soldier in the arm.

The BGB team then returned � re, accord-ing to the release.

“At one stage, the two sides were locked in a scu� e, the release says. At that time, a sec-ond boat arrived on the scene. The BGP men then disappeared and took BGB Naik Razzaq and his sub-machine gun along with them.

“The rest of the members of the boat saved themselves by jumping into the river and swimming ashore,” says the release.

A year ago, another BGB soldier was ab-ducted and killed by Myanmar’s border force.

On May 28, 2014, BGB Naik Mizanur Rah-man was allegedly abducted and killed by the Myanmar frontier force near the Paanchhari

border in Naikkhongchhari, Bandarban dis-trict.

Two days later, when Myanmar’s BGP was scheduled to return Mizanur’s body to the BGB, BGP men opened � re on the Bangladeshi soldiers instead of handing over the body.

BGB said Naik Mizanur was patrolling the border to check Rohingya in� ltration.

Amid high tension, Myanmar’s BGP re-turned Naik Mizanur’s body on May 31. At a � ag meeting held on June 3, BGB protested the killing and demanded a probe and punish-ment for the killer.

Myanmar has still not investigated the kill-ing.

The nearly 271km border between Bangla-desh and Myanmar is divided into two parts – the 64km zero line boundary on the Naf River and the 208km land boundary. l

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