BANGLADESH

bangladesh won the toss
west-indies
run:298
w: 4
over:50

Bangladesh
run:258
w:7
over:50

result: West indies won the match .........40 runs

The police have rescued a 30-year-old man whose family kept him locked in a toilet for around three years labelling him a mental patient.

Mohammad Firoz Alam of Sahebganj village at Faridganj Upazila in Chandpur district was freed from the toilet on Wednesday.

His father Shamsul Alam, 60, who was detained over the incident along with Firoz's mother Halima Begum, 50, and brother Shah Alam, 35, claimed that Firoz was suffering from mental illness.

Shamsul, an assistant teacher of Sholla Government Primary School, said Firoz lost mental balance around three years back. The family kept him locked in a toilet out of fear that he could harm the neighbours, he added.

However, physician Aminul Islam Sumon of Faridganj Upazila Health Complex, where Firoz is being treated, said, "He's not a mental patient. He has become weak because of the confinement for a long time."

Faridganj police chief Mohammad Jabed said police raided Shamsul's house based on information by the local people.

"The detainees have admitted that they confined Firoz. But they claim that he is mentally sick," he said.

"We're investigating into the matter," he added.

One of Firoz's brothers, 'Nasir', along with several local people, told bdnews24.com that Firoz was tortured during the confinement.

"I was driven out of the house as I protested the torture. I informed many of the influential people about the matter. Those who tried to take steps were rebuked harshly," Nasir said.

Local union council chairman Billal Hossain Khan said he started collecting information on Firoz when he had been informed recently.

"Everyone said he was not mentally sick," Khan added.

Local people said Firoz was a polite person. He never had a quarrel with anybody, they said.

They suspect that dispute over property was the reason behind the incident.

Firoz told that he had never been a mental patient. He had passed Secondary School Certificate exams in 1998 and Higher Secondary Certificate exams in 2000.

He said he had gone abroad too.

"I went abroad in 2002. Then I returned in 2006 and got married. After three months, I went abroad again," he said.

Firoz went on, "I came to know that my father, mother and brother Shah Alam had behaved badly with my wife. Not only this, they beat her up. To escape torture, one day my wife returned to her father's house and never came back."

He said he returned home after coming to know his wife's leaving.

"My father, mother, brother and I quarrelled frequently over various issues. I was divorced. They confined me in the toilet," he added.

Firoz also said he was given little food during the confinement.

"I would cry for food. But they won't give me food or water when I asked for. I even consumed junks," he added.

The newly-formed specialist committee on coal extraction has held its first meeting.

The committee will prepare a report and submit it to the energy ministry in four months, committee head and former Petrobangla chairman Mosharraf Hossain said after the meeting on Wednesday.

The government formed the 15-member committee on Sept 8 to prepare a comparative financial analysis of coal extraction's profit and loss and of water management.

It will also recommend procedures to properly compensate and rehabilitate the people, who will have to give up lands to make the way for coal mining.

About the much-debated issue of mining method, Mosharraf said: "We're considering underground mining and open-pit mining as options."

The present committee is the second one formed by the incumbent government on coal issue. The first committee, headed by energy secretary Mohammad Mezbahuddin, was formed in April 2010.

That first committee had prepared a draft coal policy and published it on their website on Oct 2010 for public opinion.

The communications minister has said the government has a budget outlay large enough to take care of Padma bridge project funding on its own.

"The government has a budget of Tk 1.5 trillion. Tk 200 million is not a large amount for the government," Syed Abul Hossain told reporters at his ministry on Wednesday responding to a query whether the government will look for alternative funding sources if the World Bank declines to oblige.

"The government can implement the project by allocating Tk 50 billion every year for four years," the minister said.

The World Bank has committed $1.2-billion fund for the country's longest bridge over the Padma River. However, it announced on Monday temporary suspension of the funding following allegations of corruptions in the execution of the project.

"The bank has levelled allegations of corruption during river dredging, appointment of consultants and preliminary selections. They have temporarily suspended the funding," finance minister A M A Muhith had said.

In response to the main opposition's allegation of corruption, the communications minister dared BNP to launch its own investigation.

In fact, Abul Hossain took the line he had taken in response to allegations of corruption and irregularities in his ministry previously.

He had invited Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) and the Berlin-based corruption watchdog Transparency International, Bangladesh to look into his ministry's activities.

BNP chief Khaleda had alleged that corruption and irregularities in the communications ministry were impeding construction of Padma bridge.

In response to Khaleda's remarks, Abul Hossain said there had been no corruption by the government in the project.

He said the tender evaluation committee comprising a World Bank official, Jamilur Reza Chowdhury and Ainun Nishat sent the list of consultation firms to the World Bank.

"No one from my ministry was appointed as member of the committee to avoid questions on corruption or transparency," he said.

"There is no scope to question the eligibility and integrity of the committee members," he added.

Besides, no one could question the transparency of the ministry now as the World Bank was yet to send its opinion, he said.

Construction of the $2.9-billion bridge over the river to connect the northwest of the country to the capital Dhaka and Chittagong port was expected to begin before the end of this year.

Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has said the country's army is being modernised in line with the technological advancement.

"It's the era of science and technology. The government has taken many steps to modernise Bangladesh Army in line with the technological development," she said on Wednesday.

The prime minister was addressing an army parade at Syedpur Cantonment in Nilphamari district on the occasion of the national standard award-giving ceremony to Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (EME) Centre and School of Bangladesh Army, and the fourth reunion and annual conference of the EME Corps Commanders.

She said around 1,400 Bengali members of the EME Corps joined the Liberation War in 1971 at the call of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and 162 of them sacrificed their lives to liberate the country.

Hasina said seven members of the EME Corps were given various gallantry awards for their roles in the war.

She mentioned that Military Institute of Science and Technology, Armed Forces Medical College and Armed Forces Nursing Institute were established during her government.

Hasina also referred to her government's initiatives to resolve the accommodation problems of the army personnel.

Earlier, she reached Syedpur airport onboard a special aircraft of Bangladesh Airlines around 9:30 am.

Former president and chairman of Jatiya Party Hussain Muhammad Ershad, state minister for home Shamsul Haque Tuku, local parliament members and chief of the three services were present at the parade.

Khaleda Zia wants to hand over power to her 'corrupt' elder son Tarique Rahman, a ruling coalition MP has remarked.

"Those who are speaking against the trial of war crimes know that if war criminals are tried, they won't be able to do politics in this country," Workers' Party president Rashed Khan Menon MP said on Wednesday.

He was pointing at the opposition chief's speech in Sylhet on Tuesday.

Pointing out Khaleda's remark that she wanted to 'leave the power to new leadership', he said, "Which means you want to hand over power to corrupt men like Tarique Rahman."

Arguing against her demand for a caretaker government system, he said, "Khaleda Zia knows the caretaker system was for three elections only. Why is she fighting for this system? We all know what problems we faced during caretaker governments."

The opposition four-party alliance, led by Khaleda, has been opposing election under a political government, since the 15th amendment to constitution abolished the caretaker government system.

The holy Eid-ul-Azha, the second largest religious festival of the Muslims, would be celebrated on November 7, subject to sight of the moon.

Islamic Foundation communication officer Anowarul Kabir told bdnews24.com that Eid-ul-Azha is celebrated every year on the 10th of Islamic month of Zilhajj."

A preparatory meeting in connection with the celebration of the festival was held at the religious affairs ministry on Wednesday, said a media release.

As per the decision of the meeting, the main Eid congregation would be held at the National Eidgah ground at 8:30am. In case of any inclement weather, it would be held at the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque at 9.00 am.

Chaired by religious affairs state minister Shahjahan Miah, the meeting was attended by ministry secretary Habibul Awal and representatives of different agencies and ministries concerned.

The state minister urged all concerned, including government officials, civil society members and law enforcing personnel, to perform their duties properly to celebrate the festival in a befitting manner.

Rumana Monzur, a master's student at the University of British Columbia (UCB), has not only lost her sight to the attack by her husband in Bangladesh in June, she believes she has lost her life too.

She has started over as a blind mother in Canada to her daughter, 5-year-old Anusheh. Her vision is damaged beyond redemption and she is trying hard to reconcile with the fact that she cannot read to her any more.

Rumana was blinded and her face partially mutilated by her husband Hassan Syed in Dhaka in a fit of rage on June 5.

"She came to Canada two weeks after me, with my mother. When she came, she came with the hope that her mom was okay," Rumana told The Vancouver Sun.

The former Dhaka University teacher now tells Anusheh stories, stories she remembered from her childhood.

She told the newspaper, "Now she helps me. She is learning to read, and she gets a book and brings it to me and tries to read."

"The slender thread of storytelling that has pulled her daughter back into her arms tells another story: that in a world that has suddenly gone dark, there is still a glimmer of light," The Sun observed.

Having lost weight and looking tiny and frail, Rumana is struggling to cope. "I am not okay," she says in a barely audible voice.

"Sometimes I feel someone has snatched myself from me, and I am living someone else's life."

Her little daughter is faced with the challenge of attending kindergarten in a foreign country, and learning a new language.

Regarding the case against her husband, who has not yet been handed down a sentence, Rumana said "she is focusing on her recovery, not on him".

"How can he be punished properly? His life hasn't changed. I have lost my sight."

To other women who may be in abusive relationships, she cautions, "Plan ahead, and plan to get out of that relationship. If I had been able to get out of that relationship, I would not be here like this today."

Rumana was taken to India on June 14 for treatment, as she was severely injured in a physical assault by Hassan, who allegedly tried to gouge her eyes out and chewed her nose off.

She is doing a master's degree in political science at the Vancouver campus of the university, where she was supposed to submit her thesis paper in October.

On June 15, Hassan was arrested and later grilled in a case filed in connection with the torture.

He claimed she had an extramarital affair with an Iranian man, whom Rumana met while studying in Canada.

Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has come out with a blazing response to her political rival BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia's question as to which faith she actually belongs to.

Hasina on Wednesday said, "She asked whether I'm a Muslim or not. I would like to tell her that my day starts with Fajr prayers while her morning begins at midday."

She also said that the BNP chief is creating disorder in the country as she could not tolerate the pain of defeat in the last national election and the current government's 'deluge of development'.

The Awami League president was addressing a public rally at Nilphamari Government High School ground.

At a public meeting in Sylhet on Tuesday, Khaleda said, "Prime minister Sheikh Hasina told a Durga Puja function that our Maa Durga has arrived by elephant. Is Durga her mother? We want to know which religion she actually believes in."

The opposition leader also slated Hasina for dropping the words 'Absolute Faith and Trust in Allah' from the constitution.

Criticising the trial for crimes against humanity during the nation's war of independence in 1971, the BNP chief had also claimed the government was targeting and arresting leaders of four-party alliance that BNP heads.

Hasina on Wednesday retorted that BNP has begun conspiring to save those people charged with war crimes.

"The four-party alliance had turned the country into a heaven for terrorism and corruption during its last term." Hasina said her (Khaleda) 'good boys' laundered abroad billions of public money that they had siphoned off.

"They must return the money or cases will be filed against them. The trial of those will be held on this land who steal money from the poor and orphans."

Khaleda's sons, Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman Coco, are charged in two separate money laundering cases. A Dhaka court on June 23 jailed Coco for six years and fined him Tk 190.41 million for siphoning off funds worth Singapore $2,884,000 and US $ 932,000 to Singapore.

Khaleda and Tarique are also accused in the Zia Orphanage Trusts case.

During her speech on Wednesday, Hasina said, "Our target is to keep every people of the country in peace. Children will go to schools. They will get stipends. Loans are being distributed in each of the districts. Our main target is a Bangladesh free of poverty."

Hasina promised her big audience of steps to expand rail line up to Nilphamari's Uttara Export Processing Zone, introduce master's courses in Nilphamari Government College and honours courses in Nilphamari Women's College and set up a youth training centre.

The telecom regulator says it has evidence that Grameenphone has violated 22 rules.

Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) had a meeting with the National Board of Revenue (NBR) representatives on Wednesday on how to recover Tk 8.87 billion that Grameenphone owed NBR, BTRC chairman Zia Ahmed said.

"Grameenphone's audit report shows it broke six rules, and we have evidence it broke 16 other rules," he said. However, he refused to reveal what these violations were, saying, "They'll be made public in time."

Ahmed brought up once again the allegation of one million additional SIMs, saying the revenue generated from the calls made on those SIMs was being evaded.

"The two government agencies will try to recover their money together."

"We have shown enough consideration," Ahmed said, "On Tuesday we sent another letter inviting them to talks."

GP was yet to reply to this letter, he added. In that letter, the telecoms regulator reminded the country's largest mobile-phone operator of the 21-day deadline ending on Oct 24 for a meeting.

Acknowledging the receipt of the letter, GP's chief communication officer Kazi Monirul Kabir told bdnews24.com on Tuesday, "We will let them know about our position on Wednesday."

In the letter, BTRC did not mention anything about GP's conditions including the withdrawal of the first letter.

GP was told to bring necessary documents on their objections to the audit.

Following a letter from BTRC on Oct 3 to pay up Tk 30.34 billion in dues, the leading telecom operator said the audit conducted by the regulator was erroneous.

The day after receiving the letter, GP in a news conference said the government told them to pay the money based on a wrong audit.

GP claimed that the audit firm engaged by BTRC did not follow national and international standards, despite their repeated objections.

BTRC on Oct 5 sent a letter to the company asking it to send a team on Oct 10 to discuss the audit and also to bring necessary documents on objections to the audit.

BTRC and GP officials sat on Monday where the operator requested the watchdog to withdraw their letter that asked to pay the dues, before they sit with necessary documents.

Police have detained nine activists of Jamaat-e-Islami's student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir from Dhaka's Pallabi area when they were holding a meeting on a boat.

Pallabi police chief K M Shahabuddin told , "The ICS activists were detained on Monday night when they were meeting on a boat near Mirpur embankment."

He, however, declined to elaborate what charges they were detained on.

Those detained are Habibur Rahman, 26, Ahmed Ismail, 24, Shahadat Hossain, 25, Abdus Salam, 24, 'Muhibullah', 22, Barkat Ullah, 24, Abdullah Al Masud, 21, Nurul Islam, 21, and Abbas Uddin, 26.

The police chief added that they had been produced before the court.

Shahabuddin said he would be able to elaborate on whether they were tied to the Sep 19 clash between Jamaat activists and police if the court granted police custody to question them.

On Sep 19, activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing clashed with the police at Dhaka and Chittagong. In addition to attacking police personnel on that day, the activists also vandalised vehicles and property.

Many activists and leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami have been detained across the country since the Sep 19 incident, which police claim was pre-planned and aimed at creating anarchy.

Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) president Oli Ahmed has asked BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia to organise sit-in programmes at 1,500 spots across the country simultaneously to remove the government from office.

"The government will be forced to quit by this sort of demonstration. The sit-in programmes will continue until the government steps down," Oli told a public meeting, also addressed by Khaleda, in Sylhet on Tuesday.

BNP-led four-party alliance organised the meeting at the city's Alia Madrasa ground after a road-march programme from Dhaka to Sylhet.

Oli said the government will be ousted by Khaleda's leadership soon.

LDP for the first time joined any public meeting organised by the four-party alliance. The party earlier announced to be with BNP in its move against the annulment of the caretaker government system.

Other LDP leaders, including Redwan Ahmed and Shahadat Hossain Selim, joined the march to Sylhet.

Oli mentioned BNP founder Ziaur Rahman's role during the Liberation War in Sylhet and said, "Sylhet was freed on Dec 14 under his leadership. [Khaleda] Zia started the programme to overthrow the government from Sylhet as she has a spiritual relationship with this city."

The opposition chief had begun her campaign for the ninth general elections from Sylhet in 2008.

BNP's ally Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP) chairman Andalib Rahman Partha harshly criticised the government's alleged corruption in the power sector during his speech.

He also demanded avenging the politicians for their harassment during this government's tenure.

Partha said, "I put my demand before the opposition leader: if you come to power, shackle the digital ministers of this government just like it has harassed politicians and chained the Jamaat-e-Islami leaders."

Ruling Awami League's lack of a decision over Narayanganj City Corporation nominations has seen Shamim Osman and Selina Hayat Ivy centring the discussions, even on the last withdrawal date for contenders.

Multiple meetings regarding these two AL leaders, over the last week, failed to bring any results and it was said that the matter would be cleared up on Wednesday with an understanding that either Ivy or Osman would withdraw their nominations.

However, a lack of consensus between the two mayoral contenders will lead to both competing, which ruling party activists and supporters believe would hike the chances for BNP-backed contender Taimur Alam Khandker to secure the mayoral post.

Former parliamentarian Osman and mayor of the defunct Narayanganj municipality Ivy's competition have also centred Tuesday's talks about the polls.

Both the Awami League members went to Ganabhaban, the prime minister's official residence, on Monday evening to seek blessings from the party president Sheikh Hasina. They sat in separate meetings

"Having two party candidates will split the votes," joint general secretary Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif said after the meetings, "Winning the election will be difficult. So we've advised one of them to withdraw their candidacy."

However, despite the party's insistence, both candidates were adamant that they would win the vital Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) mayor polls, a source within the party said.

The two have held several meetings with top leaders amid warnings from the Election Commission about party interference in the city elections, which are stipulated to be 'non-partisan'.

"According to the electoral code of conduct, we cannot back any candidate. Wait until Oct 12," the joint general-secretary said.

The deadline for withdrawing nominations is 5pm on Wednesday. Candidates can withdraw their papers from Chashara Shahid Zia Hall. The polls will be held on Oct 30.

All eight nomination papers submitted for the mayorship were approved by the EC along with 311 nominations for contest for the post of Councillor and reserved seats.

Foreign minister Dipu Moni will call on secretary of state Hillary Clinton today (Wednesday).

The meeting will take place at 3pm Washington time, Bangladesh ambassador to the US Akramul Qader told bdnews24.com on Wednesday morning.

"It will be an open meeting as no specific agenda has been fixed," he said.

This will be the first foreign ministerial-level meeting between the two countries since the strife over removal of noble laureate Muhammad Yunus from his role as the Grameen Bank chief in the beginning of this year.

Washington expressed dissatisfaction over the move and US assistant secretary Robert Blake visited Dhaka to explain the US stance on the matter. However, Bangladesh remained firm on its stance and said that Yunus' removal was an internal matter of the country.

Earlier, Blake attended a dinner hosted by Bangladeshi Ambassador Qader in the honour of the Bangladeshi foreign minister at Bangladesh House on Tuesday night.

BANGABANDHU KILLER

The Bangladeshi envoy said he had handed over a letter to the US authorities to deport Bangabandhu killer Rashed Chowdhury.

On Oct 5, Dipu Moni sent two letters to Hillary Clinton and Canadian foreign affairs minister John Baird through diplomatic channels to seek their help to deport two Bangabandhu killers.

Death sentence convicts Lt Col (retd) M Rashed Chowdhury and Noor Chowdhury are in the US and Canada, respectively.

"We still don't know the immigration status of Rashed Chowdhury ... we requested the authorities to inform us on the issue," he said.

Qader said, "He (Rashed) is a killer and we must explore all possibilities to bring him back to Bangladesh."

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family were brutally killed in Aug 1975 by some army officials. Out of the 12 convicts, five were hanged in 2010, one died and six are absconding.

Colonel (retd) Khandkar Abdur Rashid, Lt Col (retd) Shariful Haque Dalim, Abdul Mazed and Moslehuddin are absconding, while Abdul Aziz Pasha died in Zimbabwe.

Interpol has issued a warrant of arrest against the absconders.

The rest convicts – Syed Faruque Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Bazlul Huda, Mohiuddin Ahmed and AKM Mohiuddin – were hanged on Jan 28 last year.

BANGLADESH WON T20

The health minister has suggested putting urban primary healthcare under the health department insisting that local government division, which oversees the service, could not ensure care for poor slum dwellers.

"Keep health under the health department… We've the expertise that they [local government division] don't," AFM Ruhal Haque said in a discussion on Tuesday.

He does not feel the local government ministry would 'disagree' with his idea.

The minister solicited suggestions to solve the issue, at the discussion in the capital on the draft National Urban Health Strategy 2011, first of its kind in Bangladesh.

But experts opposed the minister's idea saying local government bodies have a long history of giving primary healthcare within their jurisdiction and the 2009 local government ordinance also mandated that.

"Don't put all axes in one basket," health analyst Dr Muhammad Abdus Sabur told and that: "They (health ministry) cannot do their own task. How they will carry out responsibilities of others?"

"Better share the risks," he quipped and suggested coordination between the two ministries for the sake of public health.

To justify his idea, the health minister said: "When diarrhoea breaks out, nobody asks local government bodies. I can assure their (diarrhoea patients') treatment, but if you ask me to supply water, I cannot do it."

"Same way if you ask local government to manage diarrhoea, they would not be able."

Ruhal said there are many divisions and if they do the same work, problems would be created.

"I asked you to solve it," he told the participants comprising government officials of the two ministries, former secretaries, health experts, demographers and local government representatives.

Former health secretary and adviser to the caretaker government Dhiraj Kumar Nath told bdnews24.com that there was a need for a body that would coordinate between the two ministries (health and local government) in carrying out common responsibilities.

"By government rules, city corporations and municipalities see healthcare like family planning, reproductive health services and emergency care within their areas. You cannot ignore that," he said.

"But they (local government) should make their presence visible to the people," he said.

The government is formulating the urban health strategy as demographers predict equal number of urban and rural population within the next 20 years in the country with increasing trend of internal migration to make a living.

The Bangladesh Urban Health Survey 2008 and Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2007, however, showed growing disparity between the health conditions of the urban poor and the rich.

Infant mortality rate in urban slums is 63 per 1000 births while it is only 29 in non-slum areas. Nearly 80 percent deliveries are assisted by unskilled attendants in slums.

Child malnutrition is 55 percent in slums while it is 40 percent in non-slum areas.

"The strategy aims to see urban people, particularly the poor, healthier, happier and economically productive," said Dr AMM Shawkat Ali, an urban health expert of Asian Development Bank while presenting the key points of the draft strategy.

For universal healthcare coverage, the draft keeps provision for giving free health cards to the poor.

Local government division's secretary Abu Alam Md Shahid Khan hoped they would be able to place the strategy before cabinet by December.

The High Court has questioned whether the government had taken adequate steps to save the eight Bangladeshis executed in Saudi Arabia. It also asked the government to respond within four weeks.

The bench of justices Farid Ahmed and Sheikh Hassan Arif questioned the government's role on Wednesday in response to a petition filed by rights body, Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh.

The foreign secretary, overseas employment secretary, director of the Middle East affairs section of the foreign ministry, ambassador to Saudi Arabia and the labour council have been asked to respond.

The court also asked why it should not order the government to extend assistance to expatriates when they need it in future.

Eight Bangladeshis were beheaded in public in Riyadh on Oct 7 after they confessed robbing a warehouse and killing the Egyptian security guard, Hussein Saeed Mohammed Abdulkhaleq, in April 2007.

The Saudi Arabian ambassador to Bangladesh on Monday explained that the execution was carried out in line with 'the law of Saudi Arabia' based on 'their confession of the crime'.

Both the Saudi government and the Bangladesh embassy in Saudi Arabia said they could not secure clemency for the convicts, as the law states that only the victim's family can pardon such crime, and the family declined to oblige.

But rights bodies across the world have severely criticised the incident, with Amnesty International pointing out that the confessions might have been made under duress.

The court also ordered formation of two committees to probe the role of the Bangladeshi embassy in Saudi Arabia. The foreign secretary and the overseas employment secretary will form these committees. Reports will have to be submitted within eight weeks.

The court also asked the Bangladeshi ambassador to Saudi Arabia to submit a report, through the Supreme Court registrar within two weeks, detailing the steps they had taken to save the executed Bangladeshis.

Asaduzzaman Siddique filed the petition on Tuesday on behalf of Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh. Manzill Murshid argued for the petitioner on Wednesda

The complications arising over Padma bridge "will soon be resolved", finance minister says.

The World Bank, one of the main lenders of the $3 billion project, has suspended funding raising allegations about the tender process of the mega project.

The finance minister had an hour-long meeting with the lender's country head in this regard on Wednesday.

Abul Maal Abdul Muhith told after his meeting with Ellen Goldstein: "We are taking a number of steps in this regard and problem I hope that problems will soon be resolved."

BREAKING NEWS
The National Board of Revenue has agreed to provide income tax rebate on stock market investment. Source tax on stock market brokerage commission will also be halved from the current 0.10 percent.

Capital market regulator, Securities and Exchange Commission chairman told reporters that the revenue board had agreed to provide the exemption.

SEC chief M Khairul Hossain's announcement comes in the face of fourth consecutive days of demonstrators by investors on Wednesday.

He also announced that the stockbrokers' commission would be halved to 0.05 percent from 0.10 percent.

Within half an hour into Wednesday's trade, the Dhaka index shed 141.75 points to stand at 5,151.56 around 11.24am. This is the lowest point since Jan 21, 2010 when the index plummeted to 5,095.21.

However, the agitation seemed to have lit up the charts with the index moving up, gaining 6.27 points to 5299.58 at around 12.30pm.

The capital market regulators have called an emergency meeting at 2pm.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's executive director Saifur Rahman told bdnews24.com on Wednesday that his chairman M Khairul Hossain would address the briefing.

He said the watchdog chief would brief the media about the current situation of the stock market.

The stock market has been consistently falling over the last few days. The latest downward spiral began last week and still appears to continue.

On Wednesday the index fell by 154 points within the first half hour of trade. On Tuesday the Dhaka stock market's general index had fallen over 225 points market a four percent drop. The Chittagong index fell by 387.31 points.

Sunday saw the Dhaka index fall by 194 point and Monday by 14 points. The bourse had fallen by just over three percent last week.