BANGLADESH

The government has launched a new home-based drug-resistant tuberculosis management for what officials say patient compliance and reducing hospital burden.

The new treatment modality was initiated on Tuesday with the introduction of a new WHO-approved diagnostic machine GeneXpert that will identify the multi-drug resistant TB (MDR TB) within two hours.

It now takes two months to diagnose TB that does not respond to any of the most effective antibiotics –Isoniazide and Rifampicin, and a patient has to stay more than six months in hospital in its 20 to 24 months treatment period.

In the new home-based management system, according to National TB Programme (NTP), an MDR TB patient can take drugs at home only after one or two months of hospital stay if the sputum tested negative to the organism. A trained team would ensure the medication at home.

Launching the new initiatives supported by USAID in Dhaka, Health and Family Welfare Minister AFM Ruhal Haque said "it's a milestone" in MDR TB management. USAID Bangladesh Mission Director Richard Greene handed over a GeneXpert machine to the minister.

Tuberculosis, caused by the organism Mycobacterium tuberculosis, can be fatal but is curable with a set of antibiotics, experts say.

Multi-drug resistant forms of TB developed because of inappropriate or incomplete treatment, which is highly fatal and could pass on from one individual to another.

The overall TB prevalence rate is 411 per 100,000 populations in Bangladesh while NTP estimates 3,200 MDR TB with annual 1.56 percent new cases.

The fatality rate of MDR TB is five times higher than the usual forms of TB – lung TB or otherwise.

According to British medical journal The Lancet it is increasing worldwide.

In the new policy, field staff will administer rest of the regimen of drugs at home in a procedure WHO called DOTS (Directly Observed Therapy, Short-course).

NTP's Line Director Dr Md Ashaque Husain said the new system would benefit MDR TB patients as only 162 beds in two infectious diseases hospitals in Dhaka and Chittagong have to grapple to mange patients.

"The two hospitals can only manage 400 such patients a year leaving many waited outside."

He said the new management would reduce hospital stay as well as overall management costs and hospital acquired infections of those immune-compromised TB patients. The rest of the treatment would continue at home under close observation of outpatient MDR TB team and drugs would be ensured by trained healthcare providers.

Husain, however, said it would be a challenge to form the team.

Speaking at the launching ceremony, the health minister asked for close monitoring of the programme and suggested training of doctors for 'effective management' of MDR TB.

Studies show that people with weaker economic background – with a monthly income of less than Tk 3,000 and with no education – are more at risk of getting TB than others.

Dr Akramul Islam, head of Brac's health programme that oversaw government's TB control strategy, told bdnews24.com that socio-economic conditions are directly linked to tuberculosis.

He said England could control TB even 40 years before drugs were invented as its socio-economic condition improved.

"In the long run, you cannot control TB unless you contain poverty and ensure good living condition," he said.

Islam said they usually suspect a patient MDR TB if they do not improve in two to five months after the treatment start. "Then we go for MDR TB test."

According to a media release, USAID has invested approximately $ 30million in tuberculosis control since 2007.

Application forms of combined admission test for both public and private medical and dental colleges will go online on Sep 18 and the examination on Nov 23.

The government announced the dates a day after it had informed the High Court that it will take in students after test this year in a reversal of its earlier decision amid weeks of protests by would-be medics.

Medical Education's Director Shah Abdul Latif told bdnews24.com that a student must have accumulated GPA-8 in the SSC and HSC exams, having scored no less than GPA 3.5 in any to be eligible to sit the test.

Altogether there are 8,493 seats up for grabs in all medical and dental colleges in Bangladesh – 2,811 in the 22 government medical colleges and 4,245 in the 53 private ones.

The nine public dental colleges and dental units in the medical colleges offer 567 seats while 14 private dental institutions have 870 seats.

The government introduced the combined test of both public and private institutions last year in a bid to what officials say "ease students' hassles."

"Oct 17 will be the last date of filing online application," the Director said, "Details will be available on http://dghs.teletalk.com.bd and www.dghs.gov.bd."

He said the one-hour 100-mark Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) examination would be administered in medical colleges across Bangladesh.

Earlier in the day, the High Court ordered authorities to hold test this year after hearing a petition that challenged the government's decision to take students only on their grades.

The court on Aug 27 gave a split verdict on the petition filed by a lawyer and father of a prospective medical student Yunus Ali Akhand.

The Chief Justice then forwarded the petition to the single-judge bench for further hearing where Deputy Attorney General Motahar Hossain said on Sunday that the government would take admission test this year.

The court then said this decision nullified the previous High Court ruling. "File an affidavit on the matter and submit it to court on Monday," the judge asked the government.

Hours after that, the Director General of Health Services told bdnews24.com that they would finalise details of admission test in two days.

The lawyer challenged the decision on Aug 14, two days after the Health Minister AFM Ruhal Haque said GPAs would be the sole yardstick of what he said 'quality' admission.

Prospective students launched protests after the announcement while medical education experts criticised the move.

The protest was called off last week when the minister assured them of considering traditional system once the lawsuits challenging the decision were withdrawn.

Shares of certain companies are being traded at 'astronomical' prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange with the rise in trade volume.
A number of market watchers have urged the securities regulator to see whether there was any foul play at work.

The premier bourse's records show that share prices of 22 companies, some of them losing concerns, increased by over 50 percent over the last one and a half months. The price of a particular issue went up as much as more than 200 percent.

On July 16, the DSE General Index ended at 3,994 points. Only a day later, the DGEN and turnover started going uphill. On Tuesday, the DGEN was 4,413.90 points, registering a 419.82-point or 10.51-percent rise over the last 32 working days.

Shares of four newly-listed companies have topped the list of most gainers, which incidentally were losing after listing. Over the past one and a half months, all the four scrips have been on top of the list of gainers.

Of them, Amra Technologies have added 231.5 percent over the period. The issue has been traded at its ceiling price for the last three working days.

Bangladesh Submarine Cable Limited (BSCL) had a 175.17 percent gain, Unique Hotels and Resorts 138.18 percent rise and Saiham Cotton Mills shares rose by 68.83 percent.

The newly listed companies aside, companies that have been counting loses have also seen 'abnormal' hikes. Textiles issue Malek Spinning has had its shares going up by 90.91 percent while Metro Spinning's issue rose by 56 percent over the last 32 days.

Delta Spinners Limited saw a 91.44-percent rise hiking its Price Earning ratio (PE) to 30.08. Maksons Spinning Mills Limited's price rose by 57.39 percent and its PE reached 268.74.

Former Chairman of Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) Dr AB Mirza Azizul Islam pointed out that the hike of prices of only a handful of shares is not a 'good' trend. "I don't understand why the investors are still buying after seeing such price hikes."

Over the last 32 days, Saiham Textiles saw a 70.79 percent rise, R N Spinning 58.6 percent and Prime Textiles 50.3 percent.

Meanwhile, a number of issues in the pharmaceuticals, power and energy, engineering, insurance and food sectors have gone up by 50 percent.

GBB Power rose 86.89 percent in the past 32 trading days, RD Food 78.28 percent, City General Insurance 72.60 percent, BD Thai 67.70 percent, Salvo Chemical 65.27 percent, Rupali Insurance 65 percent and BEDL 62.36 percent.

Goldenson rose 61.37 percent, Active Fine Chemical 58.22 percent, United Air 55.04 percent and Deshbandhu Polymer 52.86 percent in the same period.

Professor Mohammad Musa who teaches at a private university told bdnews24.com, "The fluctuation in the past few days was natural. But prices of some particular issues increased abnormally."

"It should be checked whether the prices are pushed up by syndicates in such a short period," he said.

"The prices of shares of several firms that suffered losses are increasing. Many issues are advancing despite inconsistencies in the income of their firms. The regulators should look into these issues," he added.

DSE President Rakibur Rahman said, "The issue here is not to verify whether the prices are increasing or decreasing, but to check whether any syndicate is manipulating the prices. The SEC should strengthen its monitoring."

"The market should be allowed to continue at its own pace under strict supervision," he added.

The Vice-Chancellor of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology on Tuesday approved the decision to resume classes from Saturday.

"The Deans' Committee members came to me with the new academic calendar to resume classes from Saturday. I'll give my permission," Professor S M Nazrul Islam told bdnews24.com .

The Committee devised a new academic calendar in Monday's meeting to end the deadlock at Bangladesh's premiere engineering university. At a media briefing following the meeting, the teachers said they had decided to return to classes.

The teachers had been demonstrating since April demanding ouster of the VC and the Pro-VC on corruption charges. Later students of the university joined them.

The demonstrating teachers and students abstained from classes and tests, pushing the university into turmoil.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid met the teachers in an apparent bid to resolve the crisis roiling the institution. After the meeting, the teachers announced to return to classes following Nahid's assurance to remove Pro-VC Prof Habibur Rahman and withdraw the cases.

The agitation at BUET gained pace as authorities filed two cases with the Shahbagh police on Sep 2 accusing around a hundred teachers and students of attacks on the offices of the VC and Pro-VC, vandalism, ransacking records and looting Tk 0.3 million.

The BUET authorities had filed applications to withdraw the cases on Sep 5 following the VC's order.

The government on Sunday removed Professor Habibur Rahman from the office of Pro-Vice Chancellor.

The move met one of the assurances the Education Minister had made to them to pull the top engineering university out of the turmoil.

In the wake of the joint movement, the authorities had advanced the Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr vacation by a month to close it on July 10 until Aug 24. The decision, however, failed to deter the protesters from going ahead with the movement.

The university resumed on Aug 25 but classes and examinations did not take place as the teachers and students pressed on with their protest.

Parliament on Tuesday endorsed three bills ensuring government funding for three universities including the Jagannath University.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid placed the bills to amend the Acts of the Jagannath, Comilla and National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam universities.

The bills were approved through voice vote during the proceedings chaired by the Deputy Speaker Shawkat Ali.

The laws of the three universities, established during the previous BNP-led government's tenure, required them to bear their own costs after a certain time after their establishment. Jagannath University students took to the streets last year against the clause and the government undertook the initiative to amend the laws.

The bills were tabled in Parliament on July 2 by the Education Minister and then were sent for scrutiny to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry Education.

Article 27 of the Jagannath University Act 2005 says after the university is established the government funding will be lessened over time and after five years, the university will have to bear its own costs. The Acts for the Comilla and Kazi Nazrul Islam universities, set up in 2006, had the same clause but with a 10-year deadline.

The new bills propose that the universities fund their operations using their own income along with government funding through the University Grants Commission. However, it includes the clause requiring the universities to keep up their efforts to increase incomes.

However, the Standing Committee headed by Rashed Khan Menon finalised their report scrapping the clause. As a result, the amended law does not have that requirement.

CNG filling stations and petrol pump owners in greater Sylhet region on Tuesday night called off an indefinite strike after talks with the government.

President of Sylhet Division CNG Filling Station and Conversion Workshop Owners Association Zubair Ahmed Chowdhury said they halted their programme in the four districts after the Sylhet Mayor and district administration promised to consider their demands.

The platform enforced the nonstop strike earlier in the day at Sylhet, Sunamganj, Habiganj and Moulvibazar districts protesting extortion by pro-government Bangladesh Chhatra League activists and their attack on a CNG station; and demanding compensation for their damages.

Owner of Surma Autocare CNG Refuelling Station Foyez Ahmed filed a case with the Shah Poran police on Sep 6 against eight people, including the Vice-President of the Sylhet district BCL unit.

The plaintiff alleged that some BCL members had come to his station and demanded money, but when he refused to oblige, the pro-government student front members attacked and vandalised his CNG station on Sep 5.

The CNG Owners Association had given the authorities a 48-hour deadline to nab the assaulters.

The indefinite strike was enforced from Tuesday morning as the deadline had ended on Monday night.

"We'll resort to tougher agitation programmes if the culprits are not nabbed and given exemplary punishment," Chowdhury said earlier.

A 40-year-old 'extremist' has been killed in a reported shootout with the elite crime busting agency, Rapid Action Battalion, at a sandbank in the Padma river at Kushtia's Kumarkhali.

The shootout took place at Charshadipur in Kumarkhali's Shilaidah area around 5:15am on Wednesday, RAB-12 Kushtia Camp Commander, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Naimul Hassan told journalists.

"RAB-12 Kushtia and Pabna unit personnel team raided the location on a trawler after being tipped off that extremists were gathering there to plan anarchic activities."

"The terrorists, on sensing the presence of the law enforcers, shot at the RAB team boarding another trawler. RAB also retaliated and an hour-long gunfight ensued."

Hassan continued that the extremists retreated from the RAB fire and the law enforcers found a bullet-ridden body.

Locals identified the body as that of Tofazzal Hossain, son of Samir Uddin Mollah of Baruipara Village under Ambaria Union of Kushtia's Khoksa upazila.

The law enforcers claimed that the deceased was the regional leader of extremist organisation Ganamukti Fouz.

RAB also 'recovered' five light guns, five local sharp weapons and ammunition from the site.

Kumarkhali Police Station's Officer in-Charge Abdur Razzaque said that Tofazzal's body had been sent to the Kushtia Sadar Hospital's morgue and preparations to file a case was underway.

He added that there were multiple kidnapping and murder charges against the 'extremist' leader including the killing of local UP Chairman Nurul Islam.