Dhaka road mishap kills 1

A young man was killed in a road accident on Satmosjid road at Dhanmondi in the capital early Wednesday.

The deceased, Jummon Chowdhury, son of Faruk Chowdhury, was a resident of Namabazar in Mohammadpur.

Quoting witnesses, the police said that a speeding pick-up van knocked him down near his shop of electronic goods at about 8:00pm on Tuesday.

Jummon with critical injuries was taken to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, where he died at about 2:00am.

The driver was held in possession of the pick-up van, the police confirmed.

source:New Age

CWASA union holds demo demanding reinstatement of sacked workers

Chittagong Water Supply and Sewerage Authority Employees Union observed a token hunger strike and held a rally on the CWASA premises on Wednesday demanding immediate reinstatement of the employees terminated during the rule of the four-party alliance.

Chaired by Nurul Islam, one of the sacked employees, the programme was addressed by former lawmaker Kafil Uddin, Ibrahim Hossain Babul, Shahidul Haque Chowdhury and Shamsul Haque.

The union also demanded regularisation of the service of work charge and master roll workers and employees, introduction of pension benefit, promotions for ministerial and lower subordinate staff and gatemen, promotion of the pump drivers to tube-well foremen according to seniority and experience and better hospital facilities. 

The union leaders said that unless their demands were met immediately, they would go for a tougher action programme soon.

source:New Age

RU folklore students lay siege to dept over results

Rajshahi University folklore first year students on Wednesday laid siege to the department, demanding the results of their year final examinations should be publish immediately.

Fewer than one hundred students at about 9:00am boycotted their class and brought out a procession that ended at a rally at Islamil Hossain Sirazi building in the university.

They accused the department teachers of negligence as they failed to publish the result after one and a half year of the examinations' completion.

They also completed that for the delay in publishing results they could not join second year classes.

They said the authorities concerned were scheduled to publish results with in three months.

They threatened to wage further movement if their demand was not met within next 15 days.

Later, the students laid siege to the department and lifted the siege after about an hour after the department chairman Abul Hasan assured them of publishing result within the shortest possible time.

Abul Hasan told New Age that the department would publish the result within 15 days.

He, however, refused to comment on delay in publishing results.

source:New Age

Experts see rapid spread of HIV among young IDUs

Experts at a workshop in Dhaka on Wednesday expressed grave concern over the increasing number of the Injecting Drug Users among the young men as the needle sharing among IDUs was a very efficient way of transmitting Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

They pointed out that the prevalence of HIV in central Dhaka showed rapid spread during 1999-2008, albeit Bangladesh was still considered as low infected country by HIV.

Data presented at the workshop showed that HIV among the IDU's increased from 4 to 8.9 per cent since 1999 and 44 per cent of the infected people were the sex workers.

Urban Primary Health Care Project manager Masuda Begum read out a keynote paper on 'involvement of mass media to prevent HIV/AIDS'.

Masuda in her paper pointed out that the young people were the most vulnerable to the disease.

She said the young people could not believe that they could suffer HIV infection and they were not aware of HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections.

She also presented data that showed only 1.3 per cent of the young men and adolescents had awareness of HIV, AIDS and STI diseases.

Speakers also addressed inadequate awareness of HIV /AIDS, inability to negotiate safe intercourse as it is a taboo, internal and external migrations, unsafe blood transfusion, poverty, commercial sex industry, multiple customers of sex workers, male dominated society and insufficient women empowerment.

They also said there were 13,000 HIV positive people in the country according to a survey of the UNAIDS and the WHO, while the government survey said the number was 7500.

Non-governmental organisation Nari Maitree organised the workshop at the BIAM auditorium.

Nari Maitree executive director Saheen Akhter, Second Urban Primary Health Care Project director Abu Bakar Siddique, Dhaka City Corporation chief health officer M Nasir Uddin, HIV specialist Hasan Mahmud, among others, also spoke at the workshop.

source:New Age

CWASA sings contract to build new water plants

The Chittagong Water Supply and Sewerage Authority on Wednesday signed a contract under Karnaphuli Water Supply Project with two Chinese construction firms to build a new water supply plant at a cost of Tk 1510 crore.

The project includes intake facility and treatment plant, transmission and distribution pipelines reservoirs.

CWASA officials signed the contract with China National Technical Import and Export Corporation and Beijing Sound Environment Engineering Corporation at a city

hotel.

CWASA deputy managing director Syed Tawhidur Rahman, also the project director of Karnaphuli Water Supply Project, CNTIC vice-president Shan Wei and BSEEC general manager Wei Wei signed the contract.

Syed Tawhidur Rahman, at a briefing after the singing, told media that the new project would add 1360 lakh litres of water each day with the present supply.

He also said the project duration is 30 months and scheduled to be finished on December 15, 2013.

Syed Tawhidur Rahman informed the media that at present the daily demand for water was about 50 crore litres and CWASA could supply only 2.1 crore litres.

He also said the government had allotted Tk 504 crore, the Japan International Cooperation Agency gave Tk 991 crore and CWASA contributed Tk 15 crore for the implementation of the project at Pamra at Rangunia in the city.

Shan Wei and Wei Wei expressed their optimism to finish the project within the scheduled time.

source:New Age

4 projects to ease city gridlocks

The government has undertaken four projects to ease traffic congestion in the city, the communications minister informs parliament.

During the question-answer session on Tuesday, Syed Abul Hossain said the bridge division under his ministry would implement the projects.

The projects include a tunnel from Jahangir Gate to Rokeya Sarani, a 26-kilometer elevated expressway from Shahjalal International Airport to Kutubkhali, and Dhaka-Ashulia elevated expressway.

Replying to query by lawmaker Mohammad Shah Alam from Pirojpur 2, Abul said the elevated expressway projects would be implemented under private public partnership initiative.

Prequalification bids have been invited for Dhaka-Ashulia elevated expressway project, he said.

The minister further said appointment of consultants is underway to conduct feasibility study for another elevated expressway from Gulistan's Golap Shah Mazar to Second Buriganga Bridge in old Dhaka under PPP.

The cabinet has already approved construction of a 26-kilometre metro rail from Uttara to Bangladesh Bank. Japan International Cooperation Agency is financing the project.

source:New Age

RCC reopens bus terminal today to ease congestion

The Rajshahi City Corporation today reopens an inter-district bus terminal that was abandoned after its inception in 2007.

The authorities concerned made the decision to ease the increasing traffic congestions in the city.

A release from the RCC said that Rajshahi mayor AHM Khairuzzaman Liton was scheduled to be present at the re-launch of the terminal built at Naodapara.

The terminal, primarily built for the inter-district buses, will shelter the inter-upazila buses also to reduce the pressure of traffics in the city, said the RCC officials.

They also informed that the terminal's construction began in 2001 and ended in 2004.

But it was not opened then for some problems.

The terminal, however, was launched in 2007 but was closed soon after its inception, the officials confirmed.

The officials said the buses plying city streets were responsible for serious traffic congestion in the city.

They said long-distance buses picked up passengers from mainly two points in the city, one was near Rajshahi railway station at Shiroil and another at Rail Gate area.

Both inter-district buses from different parts of the country and inter-upazila buses, plying 30 routes mainly in the Rajshahi division, picked up passengers from these stoppages.

Both these places were in the central part of the city and the long-distance buses moved through the city the whole day, causing jams on the roads, they complained.

The RCC release disclosed that on June 2 high officials of the RCC, the Rajshahi Development Authority and the Bangladesh Road Transport Group, an association of the private transport service providers, after a meeting at the RCC office took the decision to reopen the terminal.

RCC officials said the authorities concerned also decided to move the BRTC bus depot from Kumarpara to a separate terminal at Naodapara.

They said, according to the new decisions, the transport service providers, however, would be able to keep their ticket counters at the old bus stands and the buses would be allowed to come inside the city late at night and early morning.

The RCC had decided to launch city bus services for the city dwellers to reach Naodapara that is about 10 kilometres from the present bus stand, RCC panel mayor Shariful Islam Babu said.

The new bus terminal might need 15 more days to be in full operation, said Kamal Hossain Robi, Rajshahi divisional general secretary of Road Transport Federation.

Some extension work was going on in the terminal as it would have to make room for more vehicles than what it was originally planned for, he said.

source:New Age

RU demo protests at police action on oil, gas committee

Teachers and students of Rajshahi University on Wednesday brought out a silent procession on the campus protesting against Tuesday's police action on leaders and activists of the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports.

Witnesses said around 200 teachers and students of the university took part in the procession that started from Syed Ismail Hosssain Siraji building and, after parading the campus streets, gathered in a rally in the building compound.

Earlier on June 14, the national committee held a demonstration in front of the energy and power ministry against the government plan to lease out hydro-carbon blocks 10 and 11 in the Bay of Bangle to the US oil giant ConocoPhillips.

The police swooped on the peaceful demonstration leaving a number of them injured critically.

Kazi Mamun Haider Rana of mass communication department and Abdul Halim Pramanik, Shahriar Hossain, Kazi Afsana, and Abdullah Mamun of theatre and music department, among others, also addressed the rally.

source:New Age

Demand for passing modified vested property bill

Speakers at a discussion on Wednesday called for passing in the current session of parliament the vested property amendment bill with modifications to facilitate restoration of property to the lawful claimants.

Politicians, lawyers and NGO functionaries came together to press the demand for passing the bill with the modifications suggested.

They said that the Vested Property (Restoration) (Amendment) Bill 2010, as it was sent to the standing committee on land does not reflect the expectations of the minorities.

They called for defining vested property in keeping with the verdict of the Appellate Division, publication of a list of vested properties in accordance with the census report of 1974 in the official gazette and setting up of tribunals at district towns.

Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, Ain o Shalish Kendra, Nijera Kori and Association for Land Reform and Development, and a host of other NGOs jointly organised the discussion at Dhaka Reporters Unity.     

Justice  Golam Rabbani presided over the discussion and Nijera Kori coordinator Khushi Kabir moderated the programme.

source:New Age

Black day for newspapers observed

Newspaper editors, journalist union representatives and media activists on Wednesday alerted journalists across the country to oppose any sort of repression and intimidation aimed at muzzling the mid media.

Speaking at a roundtable to mark 'the black day for newspapers and the present situation', they said that the freedom of press was at stake due to intimidation and repression on journalists by the incumbent regime.

Dhaka Union of Journalists organised the discussion at National Press Club to mark the 'black day for newspapers', June 16, 1975.

One June 16, 1975, the then government of Awami League banned all but four newspapers.

Amar Desh editor Mahmudur Rahman, Amader Shomoy editor Naeemul Islam Lkan, Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists secretary general Shaukat Mahmud, DUJ secretary Muhammad Baker Hossain, BFUJ president Ruhul Amin Gazi, vice president Aminul Islam Kagaji and veteran journalist Ershad Majumdar spoke at the session chaired by DUJ president Abdus Shahid.

In his keynote paper, Daily Dinkal editor Rezwan Siddiqui said that the  Awami League led regime, following what it had done on June 16, 1975, continues to harass the journalists.

He said that Awami League cannot forget its old characteristics and activities which led it to shut down all but four newspapers on June 16, 1975.

The other speakers said the Awami League led government was following a policy of not tolerating the views and opinions of others.

They said that this policy of intolerance had led the then Awami League government in 1975 to enact a draconian law to shut down all but four newspapers.

They said that Awami League has been repeating that since 2009.

They said AL cannot tolerate others' opinion. They always try to intimidate and muzzle the press.

They condemned muzzling Amar Desh and shutting down Channel 1 and Jamuna Television which only reflected the ruling party's intolerance. 

They urged journalists across the country to oppose the repeat of such repressive actions in future.

source:New Age

BCL central council session in July 10–11 as age bar frustrates aspirants

The ruling Awami League's associate body of students Chhatra League will hold its 27th central council session in July 10–11 five years after the latest council session, as the present committee served out it tenure on April 4, 2008.

The declaration of the council session, however, disappointed some senior leaders on the present committee who aspire to the position of the president or the general secretary but might face age bar.

The Chhatra League president, Mahmud Hasan Ripon, announced the date for the council session at a press briefing at Madhu's canteen in Dhaka University on Wednesday.

The Awami League president, Sheikh Hasina, also the prime minister, will attend as chief guest the opening session to be held at Bangabadhu International Conference Centre.

A new central committee for the Bangladesh Chhatra League will be formed at the council. The present Chhatra League committee was formed on Apr 4, 2006.

According to Clause 11 (B) of the Chhatra League's constitution, it is mandatory to form its executive committee every two years.

The Chhatra League's general secretary Mahfuzul Haider Chowdhury Roton at the briefing said, 'The council could not be held because of the state of emergency. And after the [general] elections, we wanted to hold it [council] at a convenient time.'

Sohel Rana Tipu, president of the Dhaka University unit Chhatra League, told New Age that council session of the university unit Chhatra League would be held at the Institution of Engineers on June 30.

Almost all senior leaders and secretariat members of the Chhatra League attended the press briefing.

A number of senior leaders told New Age that they were frustrated that the organisation's constitution prevented anyone more than 29 years of age from being a member of the committee. The restriction was added to the constitution at the last council session.

Some leaders, who have exceeded the age limit of 29, said that they would have had an opportunity to be in the committee if it had been organised three years ago as it was supposed to have been.

According to a number of central leaders of the organisation, almost all the vice-presidents and joint general secretaries who aspire to the position of the president or the general secretary are all aged between 32 and 38 years of age.

Some senior leaders and secretariat members said that the age bar should be withdrawn.

'In my opinion, the age bar should be removed from the constitution,' said a secretariat member of the incumbent committee.

'We have been working with the BCL for years and now the age bar stops us from getting a position on the central committee,' he added.

One joint secretary told New Age that he did not 'have any idea whether the age bar for BCL leaders would be followed.'

The Chhatra League president did not give a direct answer to the question of whether the age bar would be followed but said that the new committee would be formed with dedicated and qualified students and that the 'constitution of the Chhatra League will be followed in each step of the council session.'

The president and the gerenal secretary both left the press conference without answering any further questions of journalists.

source:New Age

Shopkeepers lower commodity prices to JS committee, allege buyers

Shopkeepers lowered the prices of commodities when the parliamentary standing committee on the commerce ministry asked them about prices in some important wholesale and retail kitchen markets in the capital on Wednesday, buyers alleged.

The committee, escorted by market association leaders, visited the Mohammadpur Town Hall, the Mohammadpur Krishi Market and the Karwan Bazar wholesale and retail market to monitor prices of commodities after the announcement of the budget proposal and before Ramadan.

At the Mohammadpur Town Hall market, the committee found that sugar was selling for Tk 60–Tk 62 a kilogram, onions for Tk 20–Tk 25 a kilogram, miniket rice for Tk 44–Tk 48 a kilogram and Nazirshail for Tk 60–Tk 62 a kilogram kg but the shopkeepers sold the items to common buyers for higher prices.

The committee chief, ABM Abul Qasem, led the team while the commerce secretary, Mohammad Golam Hossain, and representatives of the Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Trading Corporation of Bangladesh and Directorate of Consumer Rights Protection were also present.

Quasem expressed his satisfaction at the prices and told reporters that the commodity prices were under control and they had not gone up after the announcement of the proposed budget.

The standing committee delegation during the visit, however, noticed that soya bean oil was selling for Tk 114–Tk 116 a litre, which is much higher than Tk 90 that the government had set.

When the reporters took up the issue with Abul Qasem, he could not give any reply.

On his behalf, the commerce secretary told reporters that the government had set the price of soya bean oil at Tk 90 a litre six months ago after discussion with business leaders.

'We will look into the matter and will take necessary measures to this end. The government will re-fix the price of soya bean oil at a reasonable level after discussion with business leaders,' he said.

The buyers at the markets, however, alleged that commodity prices had gone up after the announcement of the proposed budget and the shopkeepers had lower the prices when the committee asked about them.

'I have bought onions for Tk 26 a kg and sugar for Tk 64 a kilogram today. The prices have gone up by Tk 2–Tk 4 a kilogram after the announcement of the budget proposal,' said Sakila Ruma, who also bought miniket rice for Tk 49 a kilogram at the Mohammadpur Town Hall market on Wednesday.

She alleged that the shopkeepers had given the committee wrong information.

The organising secretary of the Mohammadpur Town Hall Market Traders' Association, Md Anisur Rahman, who along with other association leaders accompanied the committee delegation during the visit, told reporters that commodity prices had not increased after the announcement of the budget proposed for the 2011–12 financial year.

He, however, claimed that some dishonest traders were charging extra price and they would take action against such traders if anyone could level specific allegations.

The picture was the same when the delegation visited the Mohammadpur Krishi Market and the Karwan Bazar wholesale and retail market.

The decision to conduct such visits was made at the committee's meeting on May 29.

source:New Age

Only elected representatives to fix CG modalities: PM

The prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, on Wednesday said that only elected people's representatives would decide what should be done to resolve the dispute over the caretaker government system.

'Some people who have no chance to come to power through contesting polls are looking for loopholes of the democratically elected government in a bid to capture power. So we, the elected representatives, have to fix the modalities of what could be done on the caretaker issue,' she said.

Sheikh Hasina, also the president of Bangladesh Awami League was inaugurating a three-month 'Tree Plantation Campaign-2011' launched by Bangladesh Krishak League at her Ganobhaban official residence in Dhaka.

She said her government wants continuity of the democratic process as it does not want to be humiliated further by the non-elected forces.

The prime minister said the decision of holding at least three elections under the non-party caretaker government was taken in the light of the charter of the three political alliances after the political changeover in 1990.

But, the BNP government after coming to power in 1991 'betrayed' with the decision although it was compelled to accept the demand for the caretaker government following a vigorous movement launched by Bangladesh Awami League along with the people, she added.

She said according to the charter of the three political alliances, three parliamentary elections had already been held under the non-party caretaker governments. But, she said, her party had bitter experiences of the past three caretaker governments.

Referring to the Supreme Court verdict that declared the existing caretaker system illegal, she posed a question to the Leader of the Opposition, Khaleda Zia, saying, 'How could we make it legal when the apex court of the country declared it illegal?'

The prime minister blamed the BNP-Jamaat alliance for the 1/11 political changeover in the country saying that it was BNP that paved the way for the caretaker government to stay in power for more than two years due to its unbridled corruption during its tenure after 2001.

Laying emphasis on increasing of forest land in the country to face climate change challenges, the Awami League president asked the Krishak League leaders and activists to encourage the people to plant at least three saplings each.

She also urged the countrymen to plant saplings of fruit bearing and timber trees besides canals, open spaces, on educational institution and hospital campuses to protect the environment maintaining ecological balance and meet vitamin requirements of people.

On food security, she said her government has been working relentlessly to make Bangladesh self-sufficient in food by 2013 as per its Vision-2021. She also stressed the need for increasing research to produce oil seeds, pulses and other food grains to meet the domestic demand.

Sheikh Hasina asked the upazila chairmen to submit master plans of their respective areas identifying the places where projects for housing and mills and factories could be taken.

Later, she planted three saplings on the Ganobhaban premises.

Food and disaster management minister Dr Abdur Razzak, state minister for forest and environment Dr Hasan Mahmud and Krishak League general secretary Motahar Hossain Molla also spoke on the occasion with Krishak League president Dr Mirza Abdul Jalil in the chair.

Earlier, the Krishak League leaders presented an orchid sapling to the prime minister.

source:New Age

Deep convection over north bay

The low over north bay and adjoining area persists and, under its influence, deep convection is taking place over north bay.

Squally weather may affect the maritime ports and coastal areas of Bangladesh, a warning message of Bangladesh Meteorological Department in Dhaka said Wednesday afternoon.

Maritime ports of Chittagong, Cox's Bazar and Mongla had been advised to hoist local cautionary signal number three. All fishing boats and trawlers over north bay have been advised to come close to the coast and proceed with till further notice, the warning message said.

source:New Age

Rajshahi JCD president arrested

The police arrested Rajshahi city unit president of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, and an activist of Jatiyatabadi Juba Dal on Tuesday in a case filed in connection with a clash on June 4 that left a policeman wounded.

The Rajshahi police said Mahfuzur Rahman Riton, the JCD city unit president, and Sultan, an activist of Juba Dal Rajshahi city unit, were arrested at Shiroil under Boalia Model Police Station around 11:30pm.

Sub-inspector Shahabul Islam said BNP leaders and activists on June 4 brought out a procession from the city's Saheb Bazar in support of the June 5 shutdown.

The opposition activists clashed with the police as they intercepted them, leaving inspector (investigation) Khan Mohammad Shahriar wounded.

source:New Age

2 unnatural deaths in city

A college girl allegedly committed suicide by hanging herself from a ceiling fan at Mirpur while a garment worker died from a fall from the rooftop of a building at Tejgaon in the capital on Wednesday.

At Mirpur, 18-year-old Rini Akter, daughter of Abdul Aziz, committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling fan in her bedroom of their Pirerbagh house between 3:00am and 6:00am, family members said.

Rini was a first-year undergraduate student at Mirpur University College, said her sister Dula Akter. She said Rini committed suicide after her lover Mohammad Obaid, a Bangladeshi expatriate in Malaysia, had committed suicide three days ago in Malaysia following a brawl with her over telephone.

The police recovered the body from the house at around 6:00am and sent it to Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for post-mortem examinations.

A case of unnatural death was filed in this connection.

At Tejgaon, 40-year-old Abdul Razzak accidentally fell to the ground from the rooftop of the six-storey garment factory, where he worked, while he was playing cricket with coworkers during the launch break on Wednesday, police said.

Razzak, son of Lokman Bepari, died on the spot. His body was later taken to the DMCH morgue for autopsy.

source:New Age

Govt asked to abide by JS recommendation over SC judges’ salaries

The High Court on Wednesday asked the government to increase the remuneration and other benefits of the Supreme Court judges in accor-

dance with the recommendation made by a parliamentary body in February 2010.

The bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury and Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore passed the order in its verdict in a writ petition filed by rights organisation Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh on March 20, 2011.

On February 13, 2010, the parliamentary sub-committee recommended raising the salary of the chief justice to Tk 1 lakh, entertainment allowance to Tk 20,000 and domestic aide allowance to Tk 10,000 per month. 

Besides, the chief justice should get judicial allowance of Tk 22,000 a month, the sub-committee recommended.

For the Appellate Division judges, the parliamentary body recommended re-fixing the salary at Tk 90,000, domestic aide allowance Tk 8,000, entertainment allowance Tk 5,000 and judicial allowance at Tk 20,000 per month.

The sub-committee

proposed that basic salary of a High Court judge should be raised to Tk 80,000, entertainment allowance Tk 5,000, domestic aid allowance Tk 5,000 and judicial allowance at Tk 18,000 per month.

The government amended the Supreme Court Judges (Remuneration

and Privileges) Ordi-

nance, 1978 in 2010 increasing the salary and other benefits of the Supreme Court judges.

The amounts of the increased salary and benefits were, however, lower than that which were recommended by the parliamentary body.

The amendment increased the monthly salary for the chief

justice to Tk 56,000 from Tk 30,500, Appellate Division judges to Tk 53,100 from Tk 29,000

and the High Court judges to Tk 47,000 from Tk 27,000.

Three Supreme Court lawyers on behalf of the Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh on March 20, 2011 filed a public interest litigation writ

petition seeking a direction on the government to increase Supreme Court judges' salaries as per the sub-committee's suggestions.

The petitioners' counsel, Manzill Murshid argued that the cabinet approved the new pay scale on

the proposal of the finance ministry defying the

sub-committee's recommendation.

Manzill also argued that the sub-committee recommended increasing of the Supreme Court judges' salaries in considering the basic salaries of the judges of the neighboring countries.

Basic salary of a district judge in Pakistan is Rs 1,20,000 and Rs 50,160 in Sri Lanka, and that of an additional district judge in Pakistan is Rs 78,000 and Rs 46,165 in Sri Lanka. Basic salary of a joint district judge in Pakistan is Rs 48,000 and Rs 39,865 in Sri Lanka, the sub-committee said.

source:New Age

Marine Fisheries Academy closed for 15 days

Marine Fisheries Academy was closed Tuesday night for 15 days as the cadets ask for meeting their charter of demands.

Cadets said at least 100 of them were injured in police baton charge inside the academy.

Speaking at a news conference at the Chittagong Press Club Wednesday morning the cadets blamed principal ATGM Sarkar for calling in the police to baton charge on them and forcing them to leave.

They sought the prime minister's intervention.

Academy sources said it all happened in a sequel to a peaceful sit by 172 cadets in front of the principal's office Saturday morning to press their charter of demands.

They have been seeking approval to appear for deck and engine officer class-3 examination after 12 months of service experience, awarding of fishing officer class-1 and merchant officer class-3 certificates equivalent and the issuance of Continuous Discharge Certificates unconditionally after the passing out.

They told the news conference that the indiscriminate police baton charged on them was uncalled for as they were staging a peaceful sit in.

The cadets said that after the academy administration suddenly announced 15 days' unscheduled summer vacation and asked them to leave at night on half an hour's notice, the police drove them out by force.

Among the cadets injured in police action were, Julhaj, 22, Mehedi, 22, Shahid, 22, Rehanur, 22, Saiful, 22, Hasan, 22, Abu Hena, 22, Guljar, 22, Shamshed, 18, Mejbah, 18, Taufik, 18, Zia, 18, Jabed, 21, Atique, 22, Khandakar, 20,  Shahiduzzaman, 19,  Ratindra, 20, Mashud, 22, Ronie, 20, Fakhrul Sharif, 22, Salim,22, Islam, 22, Dostogir, 19, Abu Bakkar, 19, Tarek Ullah, 19, Mahmudul, 19, Ripon, 19, Rajib, 18, Al Amin, 18, Mashud, 18, Mahabub Sajed, 18, Jamal, 18, Karim, 18 and Bipra, 18.

The cadets said that that they would stage a sit in before the National Press Club Saturday from where they would announce their next course of action.

Khorshed Alam, a guardian called it 'absolutely arbitrary' on the part of the  academy authorities to ask the cadets to leave the academy at night on half an hour's notice though most of them had nowhere to go and reside in the port city.

He called it 'heartless' for the academy authorities to call in the police to baton charge the cadets.

Despite repeated efforts, principal ATGM Sarkar could not be reached over telephone for comments.

source:New Age