Wall Street Journal says Bangladesh is no more a 'basket case'

BSS, Dhaka, 30 Septembr : Nearly four decades after US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger dubbed Bangladesh a bottomless basket, the largest circulated newspaper of his country the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has said the South Asian nation was no more a `basket case'.

"For the outside world, much of the country's (Bangladesh) history can be summed up as a blur of political protests and natural disaster punctuated by outbursts of jihadis violence and occasional coup', said a nearly 1,000-word analysis of the world's most read newspaper, which is regarded for its in-depth coverage of international business and politics. It further noted that "Nearly 40-year ago, only the most reckless optimist would have bet on flood-prone, war-ravaged Bangladesh over relatively stable and prosperous Pakistan", read the analysis written by WSJ columnist Sadanand Dhume in the current issue of the journal.
The WSJ comments came days after US President Barrack Obama congratulated Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for the country's MDG (millennium development goal) achievements.

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Allahabad HC orders '3-way division' on disputed 'Ayodhya'

PTI, Lucknow, 30 Septembr : The Allahabad High Court on Thursday ruled by a majority verdict that the disputed land in Ayodhya be divided equally into three parts among Hindus and Muslims and that the place where the makeshift temple of Lord Ram exists belongs to Hindus.

In their separate judgements on the sensitive 60-year-old title dispute on Ramjanambhoomi-Babri Masjid structure, Justices S.U. Khan and Sudhir Agarwal said that the area under the central dome of the three-domed structure where Lord Ram’s idol exists belongs to Hindus. The majority in the three-judge Lucknow bench also ruled that status quo should be maintained at the disputed place for three months.
Justices Khan and Agarwal decreed that the 2.7-acre land comprising the disputed site should be divided into three equal parts and be given to Sunni Waqf Board, Nirmohi Akhara and the party representing ‘Ram Lalla Virajman’ (the Ram deity).
However, the third judge Justice D.V. Sharma ruled that that the disputed site is the birth place of Lord Ram and that the disputed building constructed by Mughal emperor Babar was built against the tenets of Islam and did not have the character of the mosque. READ BBC STORY

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West Bengal parties refuse to comment on Ayodhya verdict
IANS, Kolkata, 30 September : Political leaders in West Bengal Thursday appealed for peace and harmony and refrained from commenting on the Allahabad High Courts Ayodhya verdict.
West Bengal’s ruling Left Front partners said they would comment on the issue only after discussing it with party leaders and legal experts. “I won’t comment on the verdict right now. First we will discuss about the verdict within our party and with legal experts, then we will comment on the issue," senior Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Mohammad Salim told IANS.
“We will speak on the issue after discussion within the party and not before that,” said Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee.

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Wakf Board to move Supreme Court against ALH HC order
PTI, Lucknow, 30 Septembr : Sunni Wakf Board today said it will move the Supreme Court against the Allahabad High Court order dividing the disputed land in Ayodhya among three parties and said they were not going to surrender it.
"We will appeal against the division of disputed land among three parties," Board lawyer Zafaryab Jilani told reporters here. "HC's formula of one-third land is not acceptable to the Waqf Board and it will appeal against it in the apex court," he said.

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Northeastern states ask for effective industrial policy pack'
Agartala, 30 Septembr : The northeastern states have sought a time-bound and assured incentive package from the central government for industrial development in the region, Tripura Industries and Commerce Minister Jitendra Chowdhury said here Thursday.
The demand was raised by the northeast industries and commerce ministers in separate meetings with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma in New Delhi Tuesday. The incentive package scheme under the North East Industrial Policy (NEIP), 1997, which was announced by the central government for the northeastern states, was re-introduced as the North East Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (NEIIPP), 2007.

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Soon, solar power will light up billboards, in Kolkata city

Kolkata, 30 Septembr : The West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) has finally decided to take steps against the bill boards and hoardings that are mushrooming in the city. To begin with, from November, the WBPCB will make it mandatory for all the billboards in the city to be put off after 10 pm.
Following this, the WBPCB is embarking on another ambitious plan of minimising carbon emission from the diesel generators, which are used to light up the billboards. The board will make it mandatory for the advertisement firms to switch over to solar power for running the display ads at night. The board has formed a committee comprising representatives from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA), the Urban Development Ministry and the Municipal Corporations of Howrah, Siliguri, Asansol and Durgapur to implement the plans.
The KMC will lead the way in putting up hoardings run by solar power. “The committee has already finalising the new policy on advertisements in the municipal areas, specially in case of hoardings and billboards,” said Biswajeet Mukherjee, Chief Law Officer of the West Bengal PCB.

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Sudden outbreak of Hepatitis-A epidemic in Agartala areas

Agartala, Sep 30 : Authorities have issued alert among both health establishments and citizens following spread of Hepatitis A virus in Agartala and its adjacent areas over the past two months.
According to report, as many as 32 positive cases of Hepatitis A were detected among 45 random samples collected from Agartala during the past two months. Experts have advised to drink water after due purification and filtering.

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BRRI to release short duration Aman rice variety next year

BSS, Dhaka, 30 Septembr : Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) is working to launch a short duration and draught tolerant Aman variety next year to increase the overall rice production in the country.

"After getting approval from the National Seed Board, the new variety of Aman will reach the farmers across the country by next year", said the BRRI scientists at a press conference at the Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) here today on the eve of celebrating 40 years of the Institute tomorrow. The existing Aman varieties including BR-10, BR-11 and BRRI dhan-30 need 135-145 days to complete harvest and due to its long duration the crop is affected by early drought.
On the other hand, the short duration Aman crop would need maximum 100-105 days to complete the harvest and protect the crop from early drought, they said adding that the variety would bring good results in Jessore, Kushtia, Jhenidah and Rajshahi already identified as the early drought prone area of the country.
detailing the outstanding contribution of BRRI to the country's increased rice production since its establishment in 1970, the Director General of BRRI, Dr Md Abdul Mannan said "BRRI so far has developed 57 high-yielding rice varieties including 4 hybrids having 2-3 times higher yield potential than the traditional rice varieties".

The institute has developed more than 50 improved technologies on soil, water, fertilizer and cultural practice of rice, said the official.

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