Tale of modern-day Ekalavyas
A preceptoral parable in Mahabharata, one of the two Indian epics, concerns the offering of the right hand thumb by Ekalavya, a tribal boy, as his gurudakshina (honorarium) to Dronacharya or Drona, spiritual guru of the boy. As the story relates, Drona, the royal preceptor to the Pandavas and Kauravas,...
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Left Behind: Families of migrants wait in limbo
Wahid Haider talks about his son's departure to Italy almost seven years ago without regret or hesitation. Haider has not seen Nayeem, now 30 years old, since he left Nankar in search of better economic prospects, travelling through Romania, where he spent several months, before entering Italy.Wahid, a former chair...
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Migrants without shoes
A construction site in Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, where Abul Hossain works. — Credit: Shahidul Alam/IPS
It is past midnight. The aircraft comes in from Saudi Arabia carrying workers who had been hastily ejected. They had gone from Ethiopia to do a variety of jobs in a Kingdom flush with oil...
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Bringing back jute's lost lustre
The favourable climate in Bangladesh helps our farmers produce good quality jute, probably the best in the world. Now Bangladesh is the second largest exporter of raw jute globally, though once it was in the top position. Once, jute and jute goods were the top export earning sector of the...
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