The Daily Star: Internet Edition Thu. November 02, 2006

Vol. 5 Num 864

Thu. November 02, 2006


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Front Page

First Council Meeting
Advisers talk ways to make EC effective
The council of advisers to the interim government yesterday in its first meeting started searching for ways to make the Election Commission (EC) factually effective by any means necessary to hold thenext

Agitation if Iajuddin fails to do 11 tasks
14-party combine tells foreign diplomats
The Awami League (AL)-led 14-party combine yesterday briefed foreign diplomats and donors' representatives in Dhaka about the current political situation, and said failure to carry out the 11-point immediate

Portfolio Distribution
Iajuddin retains vital ministries
President and Chief Adviser Professor Iajuddin Ahmed last night allocated portfolios to the advisors of his caretaker government, keeping all the vital ministries under his stewardship.

EC reconstitution demand appears new to Bhuiyan
BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan said 14-party coalition's demand for restructuring the Election Commission (EC) is 'new' to him.

Poor become poorer despite steady growth
Income of 50pc people decreases
Bangladesh saw a steady rise in its annual GDP rate in the five years of the BNP-led alliance government's rule.

Portfolios
No talk before distribution dismays advisers
Disappointing some of the newly sworn advisers, there was no discussion on distribution of portfolios in the first meeting of the council of advisers to the interim government.

10 advisers vow to work for fair polls
The council of ten advisers to the non-party caretaker government yesterday sought cooperation from all as they vowed to hold a free and fair election through dedication to their responsibilities.

Liquid waste

Adviser Fazlul irked by comment to watch neutrality
Adviser to the caretaker government former justice Fazlul Haque yesterday came down heavily on the political parties for setting a deadline for the advisers to prove their neutrality and keeping their

Ershad, wife meet Khaleda over new move to join BNP
BNP has taken a fresh initiative to bring HM Ershad-led Jatiya Party (JP) to its alliance and the JP chief and his wife JP presidium member Rawshan Ershad met BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia at Hawa Bhaban

Yunus gives A+ to chief adviser
Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus yesterday expressed satisfaction over performance of the chief adviser to the caretaker government.

21 die in Sirajganj road mishap
Twenty-one people were killed and more than 50 others were injured in a fatal road accident on the Bogra-Nagarbari Highway in Rayganj upazila of Sirajganj yesterday morning.

Voter list

Taher Thakur among 18 charged with Aug 15 killings
A Dhaka court yesterday framed charges against 18 accused, including Taher Uddin Thakur, in connection with the 14 Murder Case of August 15, 1975 in Mohammadpur.

Medicare at public hospitals goes costlier
Charges hiked at end of alliance tenure
Treatment cost at government hospitals across the country have abruptly become higher as the user fee rates of several items were increased besides imposing the fees on a few other facilities withoutany

Political situation stalls manpower export
91 out of 400 workers go to Malaysia so far
Manpower export to Malaysia has come to a stagnation due to the transition of power and suspension of the executive committee (EC) of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira).

Focus on Paltan rally as 14-party readies to declare final stance
The Awami League-led 14-party combine is setting the stage for tomorrow's rally at Paltan Maidan in the capital from where it is going to make its "final" stance on the caretaker government.

AL mounts pressure on president with impossible demands
BNP rally told
BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan yesterday alleged that the Awami League (AL)-led 14-party combine is trying to mount pressure on the president by placing demands that are impossible to fulfil

US envoy hails Khaleda's role for restraint
US Ambassador Patricia Butenis yesterday met BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia at her cantonment residence and stressed the importance of neutral and nonpartisan role of the caretaker government to ensure free

Call to make all contractual, political appointess OSD
Bangladesh Civil Service Samannoy Committee yesterday demanded that the chief of the caretaker government make OSD in 24 hours all the officials appointed on contractual basis and those who were involved

Family members of ex-BNP MP Wadud made voters twice
Family members of former BNP lawmaker Wadud Bhuiyan have been put on the present voter list twice with the district election officer, a relative of Wadud, failing to explain this.

Jamaat, Jukta Front meet chief adviser
President and Chief Adviser to the caretaker government Iajuddin Ahmed yesterday sought cooperation of all concerned to hold a free and fair election.

Col Faruk
Verdict in 3 cases not delivered
A Dhaka court yesterday could not deliver the verdict of the three cases filed ten years ago against Lt Colonel (dismissed) Syed Farukur Rahman -- also condemned in the Bangabandhu murder case -- as one

'BDR men' beat to death Hatia AL leader
Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) men reportedly beat an Awami League (AL) leader to death and wounded 30 others at Hatia upazila Tuesday night as they were watching the oath taking ceremony of the advisers onTV.

Citizens' group urges CA to remain neutral
Expressing deep concern over the volatile political set-up in the country, a group of eminent citizens yesterday urged the caretaker government chief, who is also the President of Bangladesh, to manifest

Pro-BNP doctors get bail
A Dhaka court yesterday granted bail to 70 pro-BNP doctors including its Secretary General AZM Zahid Hossain in five cases filed against them for attacking the pro- Awami League (AL) doctors and ransacking

BSF kills 1
The Indian Border Security Force (BSF) shot dead a Bangladeshi cattle trader and injured another on Ghiba border under Sharsha upazila of the district yesterday morning.

LDP offers to disclose assets
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Executive President Col (retd) Oli Ahmed yesterday said that all LDP candidates and their relatives will disclose accounts of their assets publicly before the next election

7 Palestinians killed in Israel's Gaza raid
Seven Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were killed in Gaza yesterday when Israeli infantry backed by tanks seized control of a town in a major operation in the battered territory.

Home secy given clean chit
Establishment Secretary AFM Solaiman Chowdhury yesterday ruled out the widespread allegations against the present home secretary SM Jahirul Islam of being loyal to any particular political party.

Japan to keep North Korea sanctions despite nuke talks
Japan will keep up its sanctions against North Korea despite the communist state's decision to return to six-nation talks on nuclear disarmament, senior ministers said yesterday.

Ctg port remains pirates' hotspot
Reveals watchdog report
Piracy declined globally this year, but Chittagong was now the world's most dangerous port, with a rise in piracy there and in some other key hotspots, a watchdog said yesterday.