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Char people of Kurigram rebuild their lives defying flood and erosion devastation
Braving floods and erosion people living in Char areas (newly emerged land) are rebuilding their lives in northern district of Kurigram with income generating and social awareness programmes.
Brahmaputra, Dharala, Teesta are among the 16 rivers that run through this district where annual floods and river erosion are common. Every year hundreds of poor marginal people lose their homesteads to erosion and deluge.
As the river erosion and floods take away homes, new lands emerge from the soil deposits which are called Chars ( land bars). Homeless people often migrate to the Chars for living and growing crops in the fertile soil. Kurigram has 420 such Chars, according to official estimate.
During a recent visit to Sadar upazila’s Sardarpara village ashore of Dharala River the UNB reporter found 240 flood devastated families rebuilding their lives by engaging in economic and social activities.
Malek and Dildar residents of the village said the road connecting the village to other parts broke down in the latest flood but the locals repaired it with the assistance of Union Council and individual aid.
The local initiative has made the road usable for vehicles and the children are able to go to school again, they said.
Cultivating seasonal vegetables, rearing sheep suitable for the region has become the key to changing the living standards of Char residents in Kurigram.
Along with the means of livelihood the residents are being made aware of legal and social rights and about good governance which is helping them become self-sufficient and responsible citizens.
The credit largely goes to the private development organization Friendship Bangladesh which has come to support 720 families of 24 Char in Chilmari, Roumari and Sadar upazila in their journey to this change.
Sumi Begum, another villager said, “We have recently been trained on good governance where we learned about the adverse effects of domestic violence, early marriage, divorce, multiple marriages.” She said they also now know about the country’s constitution and parliament.
Whenever the locals need legal support or have queries the organization’s legal booth provides them cost free service, she said
Also read: Proper steps urged for char areas’ development
Thanks to good weather Thakurgaon farmers hope for a bumper mustard harvest
Farmers in Thakurgaon district are expecting a bumper harvest of mustard beyond their expectations this year, thanks to the favourable weather.
Mustard has been cultivated in a vast tract of Ranishankoil upazila of the district this season and landscape here has already turned yellow raising hopes among the farmers.
Officials at the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) say they hope the mustard cultivators will make better profit this year due to the favourable weather.
Besides, there is no report of major pest attack, which increases the hope of high harvest.
Mustard is a cool-weather crop and is grown from seeds sown in early spring. Farmers cultivate mustard from mid-December to end of January and the bright yellow mustard flowers are now in full bloom everywhere.
During a recent visit to Lehemba, Birashi, Ratore, Nandua, Bharnia and Dharmagarh villages in Ranishankoil upazila of the district, this UNB correspondent found that a vast track of lands has been brought under the mustard cultivation and field after field in the upazila are now full of yellow flowers, making people cheerful in the dry season.
Also read: Faridpur flood: Over 2000ha cropland submerged for nearly four weeks
Bangladesh stands out for great strides in financial inclusion in 50 years
Financial inclusion in Bangladesh has witnessed ‘miraculous’ progress in 50 years, particularly since the advent of mobile financial services (MFS), till now that nearly 90 percent of the population is estimated to be covered by the formal banking system, MFS, and microfinance institutions (MFIs), according to the man who made financial inclusion a centrepiece of central bank policy.
Most experts agree that Bangladesh Bank’s policy support and realistic measures for enhancing common people's access to the financial sector have helped the country to reach such a position.
The central bank’s thrust in this regard began during the reign of Dr. Atiur Rahman, who served as governor from 2009-15. In the six years since he left, the central bank has carried forward his vision.
As a policy, financial inclusion is recognized to have significant potential for improving the well-being for all, and especially for participants who belong to the poor and marginalised groups.
According to the World Bank’s 2017 Findex report, which looked at financial inclusion, the percentage of adults with financial accounts in Bangladesh rose from 31 percent in 2014 to 50 percent in 2017. Till the introduction of MFS in 2012, that number stood at around 20 percent for a long time. A financial account is broadly defined by the index as an account at a bank or another type of financial institution.
Now, Atiur Rahman believes 60 percent of adults are covered by the formal banking system, which increases to 90 percent if account opening and financial involvement through MFS and MFIs are included.
READ: IFC inks deal with BFIU to develop eKYC infrastructure for fast-tracking financial Inclusion
According to Bangladesh Bank data, the country witnessed a huge jump in deposit accounts with banks during the 2019-20 fiscal. As of June 2020, the number of deposit accounts in the banking sector stood at 13.24 crore as of June this year, which was a 33.6 percent jump from a year earlier. The number of dormant accounts is estimated at around 10 percent.
“The total deposits of the banking sector crossed Tk12 trillion (12,000 crore) in 2020, from Tk 678 crore in 1973, mobile finance deposits stood around Tk10,000 crore and the deposits with the MFI system crossed Tk 1 trillion (1000 crore) recently,” Dr Atiur said.
Comparing the central bank’s target of disbursing Tk 26,000 crore in loans to the agriculture and rural sector in the current fiscal to only Tk 100 crore set aside for the sector in 1973, Dr Atiur said it is very clear that Bangladesh “achieved miraculous success in financial inclusion and access to finance.”
Bangladesh introduced the No-Frill Accounts [or NFAs, these require zero or very low minimum balance and banking facilities such as withdrawals and ATM and debit card facilities incur zero charges], opened with an initial deposit of Tk10/50/100 for various disadvantaged groups.
There are also the school banking accounts opened by the banks for under -18s and working children accounts opened by the banks through collaboration with NGOs.
According to the BB, as of June 2020, more than 22 million (2.2 crore) No-Frill Accounts had been opened through banks. All the various categories of No-Frill Accounts, including for farmers, hardcore poor, freedom fighters and social safety net beneficiaries, witnessed growth. At the same date, over 2.4 million School Banking Accounts had been opened, and 19 banks had opened 10,029 accounts for Working Children with the help of 23 NGOs.
As of June 2020, Farmers’ Accounts remain the major category of NFAs, contributing around 45 percent of the total number. Bangladesh Bank data also showed the number of accounts opened under Social Safety Net Programs increased by over 38 percent during the last quarter of the 2019-20 fiscal. The onset of the pandemic contributed to this growth as more and more people opened such accounts to access the government’s increased support programs during this period.
The total amount of deposits in the No-Frill Accounts reached Tk 2,386.74 crore in June 2020, a growth of 19.1% year-on-year.
READ: Financial inclusion of small businesses: Uttaron SME card launched
Economist Dr. ABM Mirza Azizul Islam acknowledged Bangladesh’s “very impressive progress” in financial inclusion since the introduction of mobile financial services. He believes there should be even more expansion of financial coverage to include marginal people in the financial system, he said.
Mirza Aziz, however, said access to private sector credit is still lagging in the country, and policymakers have to focus on simplifying the system for providing and accessing loans.
Atiur Rahman returned to Bangladesh Bank in February 2020 to deliver the annual Nur Matin Lecture, where he talked about the various measures and philosophy underpinning the drive to increase financial inclusion. At present the country is working in accordance with the first National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS), adopted in 2018, and covering the time period from 2019-2024.
Chairing the 2020 Nur Matin Lecture program, Governor Fazle Kabir said: "Measures undertaken with respect to financial inclusion like agent and booth banking, mobile banking and school banking, opening NFAs, banking for working street children and arranging fairs and creating refinancing schemes have brought a massive number of unbanked people under banking services. All these efforts proudly carry the stamp of your (Atiur Rahman’s) dedication.”
2021, the year a stricken film industry rose like the phoenix
After suffering the wrath of the ongoing global pandemic of COVID-19 for the majority of the past two years, the film industry in Bangladesh finally made its long-awaited glorious comeback this year with a handful of quality films and queues for tickets outside the cinema halls.
The “almost dying industry,” according to many tired and retired moviegoers and industry-experts, observed the return of the cinephiles at the multiplexes and cinema halls across the country, celebrating a few major releases - which set the year on a restarting mode, seeking an even better future.
According to the data collected from the producers, distributors and cinema hall authorities across the country, there are less than 60 active cinema halls currently showcasing films in Bangladesh. The number is astonishingly poor, considering the fact that Bangladesh had approximately 250 active cinema halls before the pandemic, and more than a thousand running halls back in the 90’s.
It is an undeniable fact that the cinema industry around the world suffered the havoc of the pandemic; however, the situation in Bangladesh had been worsening for such a long time even before the pandemic. The industry drastically drowned during the pandemic lockdown without the presence of in-house audiences, the bloodstream in the vessels of the entertainment industry through the cinema halls.
That being said, there was a lack of quality content over the years which did not thrive the moviegoers to the theatres, and thankfully that situation got slightly improved this year with the arrival of a good number of quality movies.
Read: Rickshaw Girl: A Movie by Amitabh Reza won Award in International Film Festival
Undoubtedly, the trailblazing film for this year has been the much talked about and several accolades conquering film ‘Rehana Maryam Noor’. The second directorial venture of talented filmmaker Abdullah Mohammad Saad earned the glory of becoming the first Bangladeshi film showcased in the prestigious Un Certain Regard category at the 74th Cannes International Film Festival this year.
After being screened at the Sal Dubusi Theater in the Cane Pale Do Festival building on July 7, the film finally hit the silver screens across the country on November 12, and till now the Azmeri Haque Badhon starrer film is enthralling the local and international cinephiles and bagging awards all over the world, namely the "Best Actress" award for Badhon at the 14th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) for her stellar performance, while director Saad received the “Jury Grand Prize”. The film has also bagged the "New Talent Award" at the HongKong Asian Film Festival 2021, “Best Actress” award for Badhon at the Mosaic International South Asian Film Festival 2021 and more, while also being nominated for the official nomination from Bangladesh for the Oscar 2022.
Another film which has similarly created the buzz around the world was young filmmaker Rezwan Shahriar Sumit's maiden film 'Nonajoler Kabbo’ (The Salt in our Waters), released for the moviegoers in Bangladesh on November 26. Regarding the film's unique and heart-warming promotional activities, Sumit told UNB: "We have successfully organised 3 screening sessions on November 23 and 24, as part of our coastal screening in Patuakhali, honouring the fact that the film is made on the life of our coastal fishing community - so they were the first ones to watch it in the country, as per my commitment to the community. The area which we used for the shooting, a remote fishing community in Patuakhali, has lost its existence due to river erosion. They were as emotional to see the land and story of their lives unfold on the silver screen, and it was emotional for me as well, also because of my 7 years long journey behind this dream project.”
As mosquitoes rage across Dhaka, Mayor Taposh finds ‘solution in public awareness’
Tormented by mosquito menace, the city dwellers continue to blame the city authorities for not doing enough to save them from mosquito-borne diseases, particularly Dengue.
The mosquito menace is a major issue in Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) as elsewhere in the capital. Despite DSCC's claim of conducting mosquito control drives regularly, the city dwellers are not getting relief from the torment of mosquitoes.
According to residents of DSCC, the city corporation has not been able to destroy the breeding grounds of mosquitoes.
Like the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), the people in the south city area have failed to protect themselves even after using mosquito nets, mosquito coils, electric bats, and mosquito repellent sprays.
The problem during the daytime is relatively tolerable but it becomes unbearable at night in home, office-court, educational institutions.
Read: DSCC conducts drive against Aedes mosquito as dengue cases rise
The city’s worst-hit areas include Malibagh, Rampura, Banasree, Meradia, Goran, Khilgaon, Jatrabari, Sayedabad, Dhanmondi, Old Dhaka, Fakirapul, Arambagh, Paltan, Motijheel, Kamalapur, Maniknagar, Basabo, Mugda, Khilgaon, Dholaikhal, Kuril, Mir Hajaribag, Shyampur, Kamrangirchar, Sutrapur, Mohammadpur and Hazaribagh.
Shocker from Sirajganj: In-laws ‘shave housewife’s hair, eyebrows’
A 43-year-old man and two of his family members were detained by RAB members on Tuesday in a case filed on charge of shaving his wife’s hair and eyebrows in Shahjadpur upazila of Sirajganj.
The detainees are victim Gulnahar Parvin Minu’s husband Mehedi Hasan Sujon, 43, his brother Md Sumon,35, and mother Maina,55, residents of Satbaria village in the upazila.
Read:Woman 'tortured to death by husband’ in Ctg; Husband, another held
They were detained around 6 am from Shahzadpur in Sirajganj and Savar during a joint drive of Rab-4 and Rab-12, said Major Md Mushfiqur Rahman, deputy commander of Rapid Action Battalion-12 (RAB).
Married in 2006, Minu and Mehedi live in Gazipur as Mehedi works in a garment factory.
Minu alleged her husband always tortured her both physically and mentally.
What actually drives Bangladeshi patients overseas for treatment?
Even though there are top-notch doctors in Bangladesh, many people fly abroad for treatment as they cannot rely on the local medical systems, according to both healthcare experts and patients.
In some cases, they said, the patients find the medical treatment relatively more cost-effective in some countries than hospitals in Bangladesh.
"The behaviour of health workers, including physicians also matters…it’s very important to me as others,” said Mujibur Rahman, a retired engineer.
According to healthcare observers, mismanagement, shortage of manpower and poor waste management system, widespread corruption, and irregularities, staff’s insincerity and casual monitoring by the authorities concerned are the major obstacles to ensuring quality treatment and patient-friendly environment in the country’s almost all public and private hospitals.
They said the country’s healthcare system needs a complete overhaul to ensure quality treatment and diagnoses at local hospitals and diagnostic centres to discourage people from going abroad for treatment and check huge foreign currency from going down the drain every year.
Talking to UNB, former World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Advisor Muzaherul Huq, former director (disease control) of DGHS Be-Nazir Ahmed, and public health expert MH Chowdhury (Lenin) made the observations.
Growing outbound-medical tourists
According to a report carried by the Times of India on Jul 24 this year, a huge majority of medical tourists — 54.3% — who visited India last year were from Bangladesh, followed by 9% from Iraq, 8% from Afghanistan, 6% from the Maldives and 4.5% from a group of African nations.
Citing the data released by the Indian Union Tourism Ministry, the report also said Bangladesh accounted for 23.6% of medical tourists in 2009, while the Maldives had the highest share at 57.5%. While Bangladesh’s share increased, that of the Maldives went down in the last 10 years.
A recent survey report of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) said a large portion of people travel to different countries from Bangladesh mainly for treatment.
Among the outbound tourists from Bangladesh in the 2018-19 financial year, it said, 60.41 percent went to India alone.
The BBS report said 29 percent of the total Bangladeshi tourists abroad spent money on receiving treatment in different countries.
In the 2018-19 FY, Bangladeshis spent Tk 9,933 crore on treatment abroad while the total expenditure by the outbound tourists was Tk. 33,680 crore.
According to Bangladesh Outbound Tour Operators Forum, on average eight lakh people go abroad for treatment every year from Bangladesh while India is the most favourite destination for them. The other major destinations of Bangladeshi medical tourists are Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. Many rich people also go to the USA, The UK and Dubai for treatment.
Experts, however, said the actual figures of Bangladeshis outbound-medical tourists and their expenditure are much higher.
Possible reasons
Dr Be-Nazir Ahmed said there are many good hospitals and qualified doctors in Bangladesh, but all hospitals cannot ensure quality treatment.
“There’re many skilled doctors and quality hospitals, mainly in Dhaka. But the country’s many districts lack quality hospitals and doctors. More worrying is that, many doctors compromise with medicine companies and the hospitals as they prescribe unnecessary tests and medicines, causing public trust deficiency,” he said.
The expert said many people have a negative impression that they may get deceived or subjected to wrong treatment and excessive medical bills for many critical diseases if they go to private hospitals in Bangladesh. “That’s why many people prefer to go abroad, including India, for treatment.”
Besides, he said, there is a serious problem that many doctors in Bangladesh are not ready to properly communicate with their patients as they find it unnecessary.
READ: Hits 'keep coming': Hospitals struggle as COVID beds fill
“Actually, many patients get the similar treatment going all the way to India. Still, they’re happy as doctors there are polite and give due attention to them,” Dr Be-Nazir observed.
He said the treatment cost is relatively cheaper in the neighbouroing country. “The quality of their diagnostic centres is better than ours. We’ve many labs where proper tests are not possible.”
Besides, the expert said, some people, mainly the rich ones, consider receiving treatment overseas as a matter of prestige. “Our many politicians and government officials go abroad for the treatment of simple diseases, giving people a wrong message about the country’s healthcare system."
Prof Muzaherul Huq said there is a shortage of doctors, nurses, cleaners, medical technologists and other health workers in many government and private hospitals. “So, patients are denied their rights to receive proper treatment. More importantly, they aren’t happy with the services at the local hospitals.”
“We’ve world-class doctors, but we’re losing huge money as many people go abroad for treatment as they cannot rely on the country’s healthcare system,” he observed.
Dr Lenin, chairman of the medicine department at the Health and Hope Hospital, said many people go abroad for treatment mainly to avoid mismanagement, hassles and sufferings in both private and public hospitals in the country.
He said the medical expenses in many Indian hospitals are less than in Bangladesh. “The cost of quality treatment is much higher in private hospitals in Bangladesh. “There’re irregularities and mismanagement when it comes to medical bills in private hospitals.”
Overhauling health sector
Dr Be-Nazir said the government should now focus on overhauling the health sector rigorously with a master plan to improve the healthcare system and services of both private and public hospitals. “Proper training is necessary for our doctors to improve their communication skills and professional attitude.”
Besides, he said, the government should prepare a policy for the private healthcare sector to keep their services affordable and force them to maintain quality.
“Our politicians, high government officials go abroad for checkups or treatment. They can avail of such services here. It’ll help boost people’s confidence in local hospitals,” the expert said.
He said most private hospitals in Bangladesh lack professionalism as they give focus only on making money instead of improving services. “The manpower at the DGHS must be increased to enhance their capacity to monitor both the private and public hospitals properly.”
Dr Lenin said a full-fledged authority is now imperative to monitor and help flourish the private health sector and ensure people-friendly, quality and cost-effective services.
He said the government should bring the private health sector under a legal framework to enhance its quality, professionalism and restore people’s confidence in it.
READ: Khaleda’s condition worsens again in hospital: Fakhrul
A senior journalist who was hospitalized twice in one year said ensuring hospital hygiene is also very important to attract patients by local medical facilities as hospitals in India are doing. “Whatever we do we need to do with sincerity. No one can deny the fact that patients always look for more compassion than commodified services.”
Academic libraries: Dhaka University paints a ‘very frustrating’ picture
Libraries are an integral part of universities as those offer access to all the academic resources to their teachers and students. But Dhaka University (DU) libraries are "definitely" not what they should be.
The DU that boasts of being the best among the country’s public universities has failed to bring its libraries in the flow of teaching and scholarly efforts although academic libraries are evolving with the advancement of technology.
The university stepped into its 100th year in 2021 and is celebrating its centenary with a yearlong programme, keeping its many issues unresolved -- its libraries are one of those.
Read: Buzz back as in-person classes resume at Dhaka University
Now it is a daily fight for students to get quiet spaces at its libraries to study. No initiative has been taken in the last 11 years for the expansion of the libraries to meet the growing requirements of its students, many students told UNB recently.
It is quite surprising that the university authorities have no separate plan to expand its library facilities other than having a 15-year "Master Plan", said a university official. “The Master Plan obviously has a component to expand library facilities. But to see that happen, the students will have to wait for nearly 15 years,” the official said, wishing anonymity.
The number of students at the university is increasing each year but the libraries have not been expanded accordingly, making the regular students reluctant about entering the libraries, said some students while talking to UNB.
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They alleged that outsiders and irregular students usually keep library tables occupied to take preparations for Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations and other govt recruitment tests, depriving the regular students of reading facilities.
Besides, insufficient books, lack of access to resources and washrooms have made the libraries unpleasant for many.
Virtually empowering the visually impaired in Bangladesh
Braille, a tactile writing system, is the only way for the visually impaired to survive in this world.
A group of students at Sylhet's Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) has just taken it to the next level -- by developing an electronic Braille device that's more affordable.
The six-member team from Robsust, the university's robotics organisation, has, in fact, designed iBraille that allows the blind to read written documents or even PDF files effortlessly on any digital device -- be it a mobile, a laptop or a desktop computer.
Read:SUST support to help students shun stress
The members of the team are Moaz Mohammad Abdul Karim, Irfan Nafiz Shahan, Al-Mubin Khan Nabil, Tasnuva Chowdhury, Arnab Paul and Pramit Dey.
According to the team, this device converts handwriting or digital writing into Braille.
50 years of independence: No liberation war memorial in Chuadanga
As the nation celebrates the 50 years of independence Chuadanga goes without a memorial of the glorious liberation war.
Chuadanga was an important place during the liberation war. It bears the some bitter memories of the war.
Pakistani soldiers entered Chuadanga from Meherpur on foot on Dec 6, 1971 days before the final victory in the war on December 16.
On the same day, they blew up the bridge over Mathavanga River so that the freedom fighters could not reach them. When Pakistani soldiers left Chuadanga and Alamdanga for Kushtia on the following day, Chuadanga became completely free from the enemy.
Fifty years have gone by but no mausoleum has yet been built in Chuadanga. The lone Memorial plaque located in Saheed Hasan’s Square in the district town remained neglected around the year except for national days, UNB local correspondent reports.
Read: Pro-liberation campaigners to celebrate India's recognition of Bangladesh Monday
Though a monument was built at Hasan Square in 1994, it was demolished citing as illegal. As there is no monument, the people of Chuadanga pay their respect to martyrs at that Memorial Plaque.
On December 7, Chuadanga district was freed from the clutches of the Pakistani Army.
Since then, this day is observed by people from different socio-organizations and political parties in a befitting manner. This year, there was no difference. The District Administration paid rich tributes to the martyrs of the Liberation War by placing wreaths at the Memorial Plaque.
Meanwhile, people from all walks of life including journalists, freedom fighters gathered before the Memorial Plaque to pay homage.