A one-minute 'Blackout' will be observed across Bangladesh from 10:30pm to 10:31pm today (March 25), marking the Genocide Day.
Key Point Installations (KPIs) and emergency establishments will remain out of the blackout purview, said a handout of the Press Information Department on Monday, reports UNB.
Besides, no lighting will be allowed at government, semi-government, autonomous and private institutions on March 25 night.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin and Chief Adviser Dr Yunus issued special messages to honour the victims of the 1971 genocide.
Commemoration and discussion meetings will be held at all educational institutions including schools, colleges, madrasas, and technical schools throughout the country, with participation from prominent personalities and heroic freedom fighters.
Seminars focusing on the genocide and the Liberation War will take place at the Liberation War Museum at 10 am or at a convenient time, providing a platform for in-depth discussions on the nation's history.
Rare photographs and documentaries showcasing the genocide will be displayed in Dhaka and other city corporation areas to educate and raise awareness about this dark chapter in history.
Besides, Bangladesh Television and Bangladesh Betar will air various special programmes related to the genocide and the Liberation War.
Special prayers will be offered in mosques and other places of worship after Zuhr prayers or at a suitable time remembering those who were killed on the night of March 25, 1971.
Marking the Genocide Day, Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Monday remembered all the martyrs who laid down their lives, stressing that it was through their sacrifices that the country achieved its desired independence through a nine-month long bloody War of Liberation.
The 'New Bangladesh' will emerge as a strong, peaceful and democratic country, he said, adding that this is their pledge on the Genocide Day.
"Today, March 25, is the 'Genocide Day.' On this day in 1971, the Pakistani invading forces carried out the world's most barbaric crackdown across the country, including Dhaka. I remember, with a heavy heart, all the martyrs who sacrificed their lives on that most terrible night," he said in a message.
Dr Yunus said the nation is still grieving over this infernal carnage.
During those days of March 1971, when all of Bangladesh was turbulent in movement, the military dictator Yahya secretly left Dhaka on the evening of March 25, amidst the non-cooperation movement, he said.
"That night, Pakistani troops launched 'Operation Search Light' and carried out the most brutal massacre in the history of sleeping unarmed people," Dr Yunus said.
Thousands of innocent people, including students, teachers, police and army personnel, were martyred across the country, including Dhaka University, Pilkhana and Rajarbagh in the sudden attacks by the invading forces equipped with sophisticated weapons, the Chief Adviser said.
"The Bangladesh we wanted after the independence, there people did not have any fundamental rights during the dictatorship that fell upon the country," he said.
In the July uprising, the nation was unshackled from the "tyranny of dictatorship" through the valour of the students and the masses, Dr Yunus said.
The interim government, he said, aspires to move forward by embracing the spirit of the great War of Independence and the July uprising to build a just society and establish the rule of law.
"I pray for the salvation of the souls of all martyrs on the night of 25th March," Dr Yunus said.
