Poised on the cusp of discussions on its much-promised reforms, the interim government completes six months in office following a wave of turbulence.

The interim government is bound to fail as it does not have the spirit of the July uprising in it, said columnist and writer Farhad Mazhar yesterday.

Nahid Islam, adviser to the interim government, spoke with The Daily Star on the nation's key challenges and the way forward.

Eminent economist Prof Rehman Sobhan yesterday said the interim government will face challenges in implementing most of the reforms, as it promises to transfer power to an elected government within a reasonable time, possibly in 18 months to two years.

Despite numerous challenges, the interim government over the last 100 days has taken many timely and significant steps that align with the vision of building a “new Bangladesh”, observed Transparency International Bangladesh yesterday.