DU printing press bleeds on old tech
Friday, 25 July 2008
Dhaka University's (DU) printing press has become a white elephant as its expenditure is 10 times more than its earning, reports BSS.
According to official figures, DU earns about Tk 1.0 million (10 lakh) on an average every year from its printing press while it spent nearly Tk 10.3 million (1.03 crore) as salaries and others.
To maintain overhead cost, it provides subsidy of more than Tk 10 million (one crore) every year.
Established in 1950 at Nilkhet, the DU press unit has seven officials and more than a dozen regular employees.
While offset printing technology has witnessed a revolutionary development throughout the country, the DU press is lagging behind with outmoded letterpress, one senior DU official said.
"Our press is not capable of fulfilling the demand for publication work as it lacks modern technology. We could have saved a lot of money if we could get our jobs done by our press," another official in DU Publication Department said.
'Surprisingly, even we have no modern pre-press facilities like computers," he added.
A committee led by Prof ANM Sydul Haque Khan of Marketing Department was formed in 2003 recommended to the authority to update the press which is yet to be implemented.
According to official figures, DU earns about Tk 1.0 million (10 lakh) on an average every year from its printing press while it spent nearly Tk 10.3 million (1.03 crore) as salaries and others.
To maintain overhead cost, it provides subsidy of more than Tk 10 million (one crore) every year.
Established in 1950 at Nilkhet, the DU press unit has seven officials and more than a dozen regular employees.
While offset printing technology has witnessed a revolutionary development throughout the country, the DU press is lagging behind with outmoded letterpress, one senior DU official said.
"Our press is not capable of fulfilling the demand for publication work as it lacks modern technology. We could have saved a lot of money if we could get our jobs done by our press," another official in DU Publication Department said.
'Surprisingly, even we have no modern pre-press facilities like computers," he added.
A committee led by Prof ANM Sydul Haque Khan of Marketing Department was formed in 2003 recommended to the authority to update the press which is yet to be implemented.