BANGLADESH

A 10th grade student of the local Ganabhaban Government High School has reportedly been beaten unconscious by a teacher for indiscipline in examination hall.

The student was identified as Mohammad Sabbir Hossain, 15.

One of the classmates of the victim, Emdadul Haque, told that Sabbir lost consciousness when English teacher Rafiqul Islam punched him in face and head for acting naughty inside the examination hall on Saturday around 11am.

Headmistress of the school Fawzia Ahmed said, "The examination of Agriculture paper was being held in the morning. The students started making noise as they found no familiar questions in the paper. Later, I went to the hall and brought the situation under control."

Saying that she was then unaware of Sabbir's beating, the headmistress said, "No one had informed me of the incident until then. But students at the hospital told me that Mr Rafiqul Islam beat the boy."

Sabbir was taken to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital first before being admitted to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.

"Sabbir is now fine," the headmistress added.

Officer-in-charge of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station Ziauzzaman told that teacher Rafiqul was brought to the police station for security reasons.

Durga Puja, the biggest annual religious festival of the Hindus in Bangladesh, begins on Sunday across the country.

The Maha Shashthhi, the sixth day of the moon when Goddess Durga is welcomed with much fanfare and gusto, will be observed on Sunday, amid wispy autumn clouds in the translucent blue sky and fragrance of Jasmine that will mark the arrival of the goddess. Shashthhi is the first chapter of the five-day religious extravaganza.

The 'Bodhon' (invocation) rituals include the unveiling of the face of the idol. Bodhon, Amontron and Adhibas are the important rituals of Shasthhi apart from Kalparambho – the ritual performed before the commencement of the Puja.

President Zillur Rahman, prime minister Sheikh Hasina and opposition leader Khaleda Zia in separate messages have greeted the Hindus on the occasion.

President of Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad (BPUP) Subrata Chowdhury told on Saturday that all the arrangements and preparation for the festival were already completed.

This year the Durga Puja will be observed from Oct 2 to Oct 6 at some 27,000 pavilions or mandaps across the country including 196 in the city.

Maha Bijaya Dashami, the last day of Durga Puja when Hindus bid farewell to the Goddess and greet each other Bijaya wishes, will be on Oct 6 through immersing the deities of the goddess Durga in a river or pond. The day is a public holiday.

The main Durga Puja pavilions in the city include the Dhakeshwari National Temple, Ramna Kali Temple, Dhaka University Jagannath Hall, Ramakrishna Mission, Anandamayi Ashram and Loknath Brammhachariya Ashram.

State-run radio station Bangladesh Betar and television BTV, as well as the private stations, will broadcast special programmes. The national dailies will also publish special supplementary.

According to Hindu faith, Goddess Durga comes down to the Earth from the Heaven to establish peace, harmony by annihilating evil forces.

Bengalis celebrate the occasion by getting dressed in new cloths, buying gifts and savouring delicacies. Families go out to the pavilions and revere the goddess.

PUJA SECURITY

A security blanket has been put across the country to facilitate peaceful celebrations of the Puja. Several thousands of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and police members will be deployed in the capital, Dhaka, to ensure security.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) commissioner Benazir Ahmed at a news conference recently said that the sufficient members of RAB. Police, Ansar, Fire Brigade and Puja Udjapan Parisad Committee are management the security during the Puja this year. Plaincloths policemen will also be there.

RAB director-general Mokhlesur Rahman told on Saturday that the maximum security was taken in the city to avoid any unpleasant incident as there would be gathering of the devotees in the Puja pavilions.

Dhaka's additional district magistrate S M Mahbubur Rahman said the district administration decided to conduct mobile courts in the Upazilas under the district administration. "Decision on security for Dhaka city may come on Sunday."

RAB's Legal and Media Wing director M Sohail told  that two of their mobile courts would conduct operations in the city on the occasion of the Puja, if necessary.

DMP's Detective Branch (DB) additional deputy commissioner Masudur Rahman toldon Saturday, "Forty Close-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras have been set up in Dhakeshwari National Temple and Banani Math in the city by the DMP to ensure tight security.'

Bangladesh Bank governor Atiur Rahman has expressed his hopes of receiving $1 billion in loans after returning from the annual meet of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Landing at Shahjalal International Airport on Monday morning following his US trip, he told bdnews24.com, "We have had positive talks with the IMF about a $1 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF). We are hoping to get the loan soon."

The IMF steps in with the ECF when any country's transaction becomes imbalanced. The governor said that the loan would help balance Bangladesh's transaction and pointed out that the rate of interest on the loan was very low.

The country's transactions became imbalanced after the central bank's foreign currency reserve fell below $1 billion recently, which, according to economists, might not be enough to meet import costs.

However, the IMF has its expressed satisfaction over Bangladesh's overall economic scenario, the governor added. He said, "They have taken our fiscal measures as a positive, especially collection of more than 28 percent of taxes."

A team of representatives, who had recently visited Dhaka, had also given positive reports about Bangladesh, the governor continued.

IMF also lauded Bangladesh for its initiative to implement a number of new laws and steps to renovate the sector in a bid to hike revenue earnings.

The governor also attended the annual meeting of the World Bank during his stay at Washington. Finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith and economic secretary Mohammad Tarek also attended the two meets.

The Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) has started evening specialists' consultation services in the hospital, first of its kind in Bangladesh.

Professors and associate professors of Medicine, Paediatricts, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Skin and Venereal Diseases, Ear, Nose and Throat, and Physical Medicine departments will see patients everyday from 3pm to 6pm.

Vice-chancellor Prof Pran Gopal Datta on Saturday opened the services that offer specialists' prescription only for Tk 200, which is otherwise Tk 500 to Tk 700 in private chambers.

"It's an attempt to promote institutional practices in the country," the vice-chancellor told bdnews24.com after cutting ribbon of the services on the first floor of the cabin block building of the university in city's Shahbagh area.

"The university will get Tk 50 per ticket, while the rest will be paid to the specialists and staff who will work overtime," he said, adding the syndicate will decide about the payment.

"Other departments will also start sitting here gradually," he said, "We will not allow below associate professors to see patients."

Al-Amin who was waiting in the queue with his mother said he came from Comilla to see Prof Pran Gopal, a renowned ENT specialist, in the chamber.

"I came in the morning, but did not get a number. They (chamber attendants) told me to go to the BSMMU in the evening to see Pran Gopal," Al-Amin told bdnews24.com.

At least 70 tickets were sold out within 40 minutes of opening the services.

Prof M Iqbal Arslan, dean of the Basic Sciences Division, told bdnews24.com that these patients would get laboratory services until 8pm cheaper than any private facility.

He saw it a 'breakthrough' in medical practices in the country.

"If we can sustain it, it will open a new horizon," said Arslan, also a leader of pro-government doctors' forum.

Medical analysts, however, remain skeptical on the future of the services.

"It's neither an evening outdoor, nor an institutional practice," Prof Rashid-e-Mahbub, president of Health Rights Movement National Committee told bdnews24.com.

"In evening outdoors, you cannot charge more than the usual, and in institutional practices, doctors are not allowed to practice outside hospital," he said, adding the model BSMMU has launched is 'very new' to him.

"It will not be unusual if I hear one day that patients of the morning outdoor are kept for evening specialists' consultation," he said.

The university charges Tk 30 for its morning outdoor services.

Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, now secretary at the Economic Relations Division, was named Sunday as the new cabinet secretary while water resources secretary Shaikh Md Wahid Uz Zaman was appointed Principal Secretary to the prime minister, official sources said.

Public Administration secretary Iqbal Mahmood will move to ERD and home secretary Abdus Sobhan Sikder will replace Mahmud.

Monzur Hossain, the planning secretary, will move to home.

Fazle Kabir, the head of BCS (Admn) Academy, has been transferred to Railways Division as secretary.

Bhuiyan Shafiqul Islam, currently chairman of Rural Electrification Board, will take over as acting planning secretary.

Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, a 1981 Bangladesh Civil Service recruit, is the most senior in his batch among the serving officers and has served as chairman of Petrobangla.

Bhuiyan, who is due to retire in 2013, replaces M Abdul Aziz, the 1979 batch officer who retired on Sep 30 after two extra years in the job.

Shaikh Wahid Uz Zaman, the new principal secretary, is a 1979 batch officer and will work with the current crop of civil servants led by secretary of the PMO secretariat Mollah Wahiduzzaman, a 1981 recruit.

Abdul Karim, a 1979 officer, retired on Sep 29 after two additional years as principal secretary.