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Humayun Ahmed dies

2012-07-19T11:39:00.002-07:00

Popular Bengali fiction writer Humayun Ahmed, 64, has died at a New York hospital after a nine-month battle against colon cancer.Dr Abdul Momen, the Bangladesh ambassador to the UN, told bdnews24.com that he had passed away at 11:30pm Thursday Bangladesh time at Bellevue Hospital.Arriving in New York on Sept 14 last year for treatment, he had two major surgeries on his colon since June 12 at Bellevue. He had earlier gone through 12 chemotherapy cycles at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre.Wife Meher Afroz Shaon, younger brother Mohammad Zafar Iqbal and publisher Mazharul Islam were at the Bellevue Hospital at the time of death.
Born in Mymensingh in 1948, he studied chemistry at the Dhaka University and later taught chemistry in his alma mater.
He left teaching when he became a fulltime writer and filmmaker.
Winner of Bangla Academy Award in 1981, Ekushey Padak in 1994 and three National Film Awards (Best Story in 1993, Best Film 1994 and Best Script in 1994), Humayun continued writing even when he was being treated in New York.

On Jan 13, the government gave the writer a diplomatic position –Senior Special Adviser -- at the country's Permanent Mission at the United Nations.

The writer is survived by two sons—Ninit and Nishad— with second wife Shaon, and three daughters— Nova, Shila, Bipasha—and son Nuhash with his previous wife Gultekin.

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2012-07-15T11:11:00.000-07:00

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2012-07-13T09:19:00.002-07:00

The sixth National Council of Awami Juba League, an associate organisation of the ruling Awami League, will be held on Saturday after around nine and a half years. Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the council at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the city at 10am. The last national council was held on July 25, 2003 in which Jahangir Kabir Nanak and Mirza Azam were elected as	The government-owned vessel PS Lepcha was stuck mid-river for four hours with 350 passengers on board after its engine stopped. The vessel's Babel gear broke around 9pm Thursday when it reached Charmonai on the Kirtankhola River, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTC) Assistant General Manager Gopal Chandra Majumder told bdnews24.com.	Rail communications resumed between Dhaka and the northwest and Mymensingh within six hours of a rail accident on Friday. The rail link snapped when the Khulna-bound Sunbdarbans Express derailed at around 9:30am at Gazipur's Dhirashram. The communications resumed at 3.10pm after the derailed train was moved. Bangladesh Railway has formed two committees to investigate the accident.

No scope for talks with VC

2012-07-13T09:16:00.003-07:00

The protesting BUET teachers have ruled out further talks with the embattled Vice-Chancellor a day after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called for continued dialogue to end the standoff.

The BUET Teachers Association General Secretary Professor Ashraful Islam has said there was no way for them to compromise on their demands.

"We have had talks with him for the last two years. It didn't work," he told bdnews24.com.

"There is no chance left for talks with him," he said during the teachers' sit-in programme demanding resignations of Vice-Chancellor Professor SM Nazrul Islam and Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor M Habibur Rahman for the third straight day on Friday.

He, however, said they do not have any problem if any high-level government official wanted to hold talks.

"We have had discussions among us. The announcement of a tougher movement is coming very soon," he added.

Amid uproar of students and mass resignation of teachers, an eight-strong Syndicate delegation of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology met the Prime Minister on Thursday evening at her official residence Ganobhaban.

After the meeting, Vice-Chancellor Prof Nazrul Islam had told bdnews24.com: ""We have informed the Prime Minister of the overall situation…She has asked us to continue talks with the [protesting] teachers."

The teachers and students of BUET accuse the Vice-Chancellor and Pro- Vice Chancellor of corruption and other irregularities.

But the Vice-Chancellor says he will not accede to 'unethical' demands and resign.

The university's teachers' association had abstained from work from Apr 7 to May 5 demanding the resignations.

The Prime Minister then told the teachers that their demands would be met, who in turn had postponed their programme for a month.

However, the teachers resumed their protests and started two-hour work abstention from 11am every day since Jul 7 as their demands remained unmet.

The university was shut on Jul 11, a month in advance for Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr, as the agitating teachers continued their movement demanding the duo's removal and threatened full abstention from work from Jul 14.

On Wednesday, as many as 24 teachers, including chairmen of 16 departments and deans of five faculties resigned from their administrative posts on the same demand.

The Syndicate sat in an emergency meeting on Wednesday evening and decided to request the government to form a judicial commission to probe allegations against the VC and the Pro VC.

The protesting teachers and students rejected the Syndicate's decision.

The VC had told bdnews24.com on Wednesday the President appointed him and he will step down only if the President wanted.

Dhaka pressing on with Teesta talks:Quayes

2012-07-13T09:14:00.000-07:00

Bangladesh is still hopeful of signing an interim agreement on the share of Teesta waters and continued its engagement with India to resolve the issue

"We could not sign Teesta agreement and we can see there is an embarrassment from the Indian side. It would be wrong if we say this is the end of the story," Foreign Secretary Mohamed Mijarul Quayes told bdnews24.com.

Bangladesh and India failed to strike the much-anticipated deal during the visit of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in September last year following strong resistance from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The foreign secretaries of Bangladesh and India are going to hold consultation in New Delhi on Jul 24, where Teesta and land boundary agreement issues would be discussed.

The last consultation was held in Dhaka before the visit of the Indian Prime Minister. Trade with India Quayes credited South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) process with the expansion of trade with India in recent times.

"Under the SAFTA negotiation, least developed countries including Bangladesh got duty-free access and the beneficiaries are businesses of both the countries," he said.

Bangladesh's export to India is expected to cross $1 billion for the first time but Indian exports also increased to over $4.5 billion in the last fiscal.

He said there are many problems including standardisation in doing business with India.

"But a continued engagement has improved the situation a lot," he added.

Public responds in droves on PM's phone

2012-07-13T09:12:00.000-07:00

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is getting massive public response after her announcement of the decision to build Padma bridge with own fund.

Prime Minister's Special Assistant (Media) Mahbubul Hoque Shakil said a lot of people are calling up to encourage her. She received scores of phone calls even on the weekend with many non-resident Bangladeshis have offered to invest in the project.

Many suggested raising funds by releasing bonds in the market, according to the aide.

"The Prime Minister is receiving unprecedented response from a cross section of people over construction of the Padma bridge. Whenever she gets time in her busy schedule she is attending calls," Shakil told bdnews24.com.

On Jul 4, the Prime Minister in response to a supplementary question during her question-answer session in Parliament gave out her two mobile phone numbers and an email address so that people at large could approach her if they found someone trying to take undue advantage using her name or that of her family members.

Since then, Shakil said, people from the wider spectrum of the society including school students are ringing her up to talk on many issues.

"The Prime Minister is excited and more determined after speaking with all these people. She thinks the people of the country have become united once again since the Liberation War taking the issue of Padma bridge as a matter of their national dignity," Shakil added.

Hasina also outlined her plan to build the bridge with own fund by releasing bonds worth $750 million.

Bangladeshi expatriates are said to have promised her that they will try to remit more money.

According to him, Jahangirnagar and Barisal universities are eager to contribute in raising fund, and students of the Department of Management at Dhaka University have given Tk 6,000 by saving from their daily expenditures.

Officers and Employees of Bangladesh's Permanent Mission at the United Nations have offered one day's salary while residents of Korparha union at Gopalganj have promised Tk 200,000 for the project.

Different business organisations, private banks and insurance companies have also offered to invest.

"We the government officers are ready to make the highest sacrifice to build the Padma bridge. Starting from giving money from our salary, we are also ready to go door-to-door (to raise fund for the project). Even our children are ready to make sacrifices," Bangladesh Administrative Service Association President Abu Alam Mohammad Shahid Khan said on Thursday at the conference of Deputy Commissioners.

The Prime Minister attending the same programme said, "We have won independence through war. Wouldn't we be able to build a simple Padma bridge?"

Referring to public response to her decision of building the bridge with own fund, she said a Grade-10 student, another student of Mandar College and a labourer from Dinajpur wanted to donate for the bridge.

The Prime Minister's two cell-phone numbers are +8801711520000 and +8801819260371 and the e-mail address is sheikhhasina@hotmail.com.