The tragic neglect of our proud heritage

THE ancient but crumbling structures signifying life and culture of those days of yore still stand in many places of Bangladesh and form collectively our national heritage. They range from the prehistoric time to the Bhuddist and the Hindu eras...

Govt may consider PSI certification, instead of BSTI approval

The government might consider the certification of pre-shipment inspection (PSI) as a quality testing report instead of an approval of Bangladesh Testing Institution (BSTI) to expedite release of products from Chittagong port.The PSI companies are entitled to issue clean report...

Development in ICT:Royal road to knowledge-based society

(The key points of this article were presented in the national roundtable on ICT roadmap on the 21st June, 2008 at AIUB, supported by Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC), Gov3 Ltd., Spinnovation, D.Net and Bangladesh Telecentre Network (BTN).A Chinese proverb goes,...

D-8 summit: fruitful or same old drill?

The sixth summit of D-8 countries took place on 08 July at Kuala Lumpur. The member countries that attended were Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Nigeria and Turkey.The journey of D-8 began in October 1996 when the then Turkish Prime...

Expanding missions to cover important countries

OPPORTUNITIES do never come on a platter. Neither can one always hope to find it near at home. One has to be on the look out for the opportunities. This is true of an individual as well as of a...

corporatewatch

four new productsGlaxo SmithKline Limited has decided to import and market four consumer products of GlaxoSmithkline plc, UK in addition to pharmaceutical products. The company has expressed the hope that its revenue is likely to be around Tk 400 million...

Energy, the vital missing link

There is a an English idiom which says ' putting the cart before the horse.' It means essentially the doing of things in the wrong order. You put the horse before the cart so that the cart can be pulled....

Pros and cons need to be assessed

The saying 'beg, borrow and steal' comes into play when one needs something desperately.It's hard for the government to steal in a situation where it badly needs funds to meet budgetary deficit. Thus, begging and borrowing are the options that...

No service provider found for collecting motor vehicle taxes

A move of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) to appoint a service provider for collection of Motor Vehicle Tax (MVT) and other fees has drawn poor response despite extending the timeframe twice for appointing such a firm.BRTA floated a tender...

A Doha deal would aid many European farmers

Two dangerous prejudices are threatening the critical meeting of trade ministers at the World Trade Organisation that is taking place in Geneva.The first is the view that the Doha round would bring small benefits - merely $50bn (

The quality factor in ADP projects

THE Annual Development Programme (ADP) is the main source of public sector investment in the country. But success in ADP implementation is not only about fulfilment of expenditure targets either. Success must not be measured primarily on the basis of...

Time to go for strategic planning on energy

There is a hundred and one points to tell the modern from the pre-modern society. But of all the points of difference, subtle or obvious, there is one that makes the difference between the two sharper and unambiguous. Needless to...

Govt plans income tax offices in 110 more upazilas to net in left-out taxpayers

The government is drawing a plan to expand the income tax department to 110 more upazilas of the country to net in the marginal taxpayers left out across the country, officials said.There are only 303 circle offices in seven upazilas...

Rule on appointing 2 directors from among depositors soon

The central bank will soon issue a rule allowing the commercial banks to appoint two directors from among the depositors in line with the existing Bank Companies Act."We'll issue a rule in a day or two to appoint two directors...

Oil price hike and the reality of Bangladesh economy

The government has increased fuel oil prices by a margin of 33.85 to 37.5 per cent with effect from July 1, 2008. The price of most used oils -- diesel and kerosene -- increased to Tk 55 per litre from...

Food prices steady, inflation push eases: FAO

FOOD commodity prices have now stabilised after surging early this year while a weak dollar may reduce inflationary pressures in many countries, a senior United Nations economist said recently."It looks like from March onwards we have arrested the rise. It...

NBR to bring changes in order on ECR in shops

Automated business establishments will not be required to instal electronic cash registers (ECRs) if they incorporate some specific soft wares into their systems to protect the actual sales data.The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is expected to issue a statutory...

news digest

killed in bombingKABUL, July 21: The US-led coalition says one of its members has died after being wounded by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan's troubled south. The coalition says in a statement that the blast occurred in Helmand province Sunday...

Fiscalisation for better business transparency

Introduction of Electronic Cash Register (ECR) system is one of the most important decisions made by the government of Bangladesh. This step, however, is not taking the right course here as its implementation such a large scale is a hefty...

Singapore may abandon plan to import sand from Bangladesh

Singapore is considering abandoning its plan to import sand from the country, as the Bangladesh government has not yet responded to its proposition for importing the construction material, said an official Monday.Moreover, the official said, the Singapore government has asked...

developments in the region and abroad

Nepali presidentBelying expectations Nepali Congress Party candidate Dr Ram Baran Yadav was today elected the first president of republic by the constituent assembly defeating the Maoist candidate, according to Nepal's Kantipur website monitored here, reports UNB.Dr Yadav (61), general secretary...

Boom time for the global bourgeoisie

FT Syndication ServiceIN the midst of the current widespread gloom and doom in the west, it is important not to lose sight of the true structural themes shaping our era.Linked to the current mood, commentators often depict an embattled and...

Tormented by soaring prices

RISING prices is now the subject of worried conversation everywhere -- at tea stalls, buses, launch terminals or any location where people come together and exchange opinion. Complete strangers when travelling together to a common destination usually discuss the weather....

BB approves sale of 51pc GSP Finance shares to BRAC Bank

The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has given opinion to the Ministry of Finance in favour of selling of 51 per cent shares of the GSP Finance, a financial institution, to BRAC Bank Limited, officials said.The ministry earlier asked the central bank...

Keeping the lifeline unaffected

The country remains indebted to expatriate Bangladeshis. For without the money they send home it would have been really hard for the government to finance the ever-increasing import bills and maintain a reserve enough to meet import requirements for, at...

No major floods likely this year

The probability of widespread floods occurring this year in the country, apart from some isolated areas, is lower as the risk factors are indicating to a normal situation, said government officials and experts on Sunday.The government's Department for Disaster Management...

One small step, one giant leap

EXACTLY 39 years back on July 21 in 1969 at 8:56 in the morning, Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) Time (02:56 UTC), Neil Alden Armstrong alighted on the moon's surface his footstep, first as a human being, and spoke his famous...

The fallacy of the 'choice agenda'

Whenever a particular idea appears to have captured the centre ground of politics it is time to look at it with a beady eye. This applies now to what is sometimes called the "choice agenda". The idea is that core...

A business-like approach to the political product

WHAT can business teach politicians about ethics? Absolutely nothing, was the answer at a recent discussion on the subject. What about the other way around: can politicians teach business anything about ethics? Do not be ridiculous, came the reply.The curious...

science briefing

Cellular chemical functions probedThe role of the hereditary chemical DNA in providing a blueprint for the proteins that a cell needs to regulate its activities is well understood. But scientists are discovering new functions for another important cellular chemical, RNA,...