Haque Specialized Group's News

Bangladesh and India will run a container train on pilot basis between Dhaka and Kolkata to assess the feasibility of extending the services on commercial basis in next month. Bangladesh is the ninth-largest importer of Indian goods, according to a report by www.thehindubusinessline.com . In April, State-owned Container Corporation (CONCOR) had signed an MoU with Container Company of Bangladesh Ltd (CCBL) in this regard, during Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to New Delhi. According to sources in the Railways, a full rake of empty containers will go to Dhaka through the only broad-gauge connection through Gede(India)-Darshana(Bangladesh) border gates in West Bengal. Bangladesh will send the rake loaded with their export cargo. The broad-gauge connection is currently used for running a passenger train, Maitree Express, between Dhaka and Kolkata. The effort, if successful, may have a major cost impact on the $6-billion bilateral trade, which is currently dominated by non-containerised road cargo - mostly through the Petrapole border in West Bengal. Road transport is distinctly costlier than rail. A 2010 BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) trade logistics study pointed out that rail movement can be 30 per cent cheaper than even sea-freight (which is normally considered the cheapest) between the two neighbours. To add to the problem, India-Bangladesh road cargo is subjected to heavy rent-seeking and delay, especially in the 70-km congested stretch between Kolkata and Petrapole. As the trade is heavily tilted in favour of India, the road movement eats into the competitiveness of Indian exports ($5.4 billion). Loading and unloading of non-containerised road cargo at the border further makes the trade costly and unsafe. Direct movement of containerised cargo by train may, therefore, reduce trade costs significantly. Also, containerisation will make the trade more organised and safer. But the proposal is not free from concerns.....

Published at: 2017-07-15 00:00:06

Police barged in a 'tea party' of leaders from different political parties at the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) leader ASM Abdur Rab's residence at Uttara in the city on Friday night, reports bdnews24.com. The politicians included Bikalpadhara chief AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury, Krishak Sramik Janata League (KSJL) chief Kader Siddiqui and Nagorik Oikyo Convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna. The politicians had gathered at Rab's house in northern Dhaka on Thursday night. JSD leaders have described the assembly of the politicians as a normal 'gathering for tea'. The other attendees included Biplabi Workers Party chief Saiful Haque, Gana Forum presidium members Subrata Chowdhury and AOM Shafiullah, Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal (BSD) general secretary Khalekuzzaman and leader Bazlur Rashid Firoz, JSD general secretary Abdul Malek Ratan, Bikalpadhara joint secretary general Mahi B Chowdhury and general secretary of citizens' platform 'Sujon' Badiul Alam Majumder. Majumder told the agency he went to Rab's home around 8:00 pm on invitation. But everyone left around 11:00 pm following dinner after the police arrived. "I was surprised when the police suddenly barged in. This was a social event. The police came and said permission was a prerequisite to holding such meeting and they needed to be informed beforehand." He claimed this event was a post-Eid gathering. "I never thought I would face this kind of situation at this event." Identifying himself as a JSD assistant secretary, one Jewel told reporters that plainclothesmen had surrounded Rab's house immediately after the guests gathered at 8:00 pm. One of the politicians who attended the programme said, "This was just a simple tea party. As politicians attended it, politics and the country's state were obviously discussed. "We also discussed the floods, water-logging in the capital, law and order, enforced disappearances, murders, extrajudicial killings and the Farhad Mazhar abduction among other issues." No police officer agreed to comment on invading the 'tea party'. Rab, who was close to military ruler HM Ershad and later a minister in Sheikh Hasina's 1996 cabinet, former BNP leader Badruddoza and former Awami League leader Kader Siddiqui had led their own parties to boycott the 2014 general election. They later formed National Democratic Front (NDF). The BNP had stayed away from that election too. For the past few years, they have been speaking about forming an 'alternative political force' outside the ruling Awami League or the BNP. Manna, who is now active with Nagorik Oikyo after his stints as a leader at Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) and Awami League, has also been voicing support for them. Khalekuzzaman's BSD is also in an alliance with the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) while Saiful Haque's Biplabi Workers Party is in the 'Ganatantrik Bam Morcha', an alliance of leftist parties.....

Published at: 2017-07-15 00:00:06

The suspension of gas supply to homes for cooking for over 15 hours has left residents of Dhaka's Mirpur and adjoining areas to scramble for food in restaurants, but they cannot get supply. The locals thronged the eateries and biryani shops on the 60-foot road at Mirpur around 9:30pm on Thursday. But most of the restaurants had no food left to sell while people waited in long queues outside, reports bdnews24.com. A staff member of one of the biryani shops told the news agency that the rush did not start until the evening after a lazy afternoon. He said they finished selling all their biryani around 8.0pm. "We didn't think this would happen, because the gas supply was supposed to resume at 8pm." He said they started cooking again using gas cylinders. "But we are not promising to serve our customers quickly. After all, it's about food. Delay may get people angry." Mirpur residents said gas supply did not resume even after 11pm. Titas Gas on Wednesday announced that supply to Mirpur, one of the biggest residential zones in the capital, and surrounding areas will be stopped from 10am to 8pm on Thursday while a supply line is shifted for the ongoing metro rail construction. But gas supply was suspended way before 8am in many areas. Many families did not even get to make breakfast as the supply was cut off two hours ahead. With no gas throughout the day, many were forced to turn to traditional 'chulas' or clay stoves, leaving those who did not have the privilege with the option to buy foods from the local eateries. Around Thursday midnight, several Mirpur residents told bdnews24.com that gas supply was yet to resume.   The affected areas are east and west side of Mirpur-10, Agargaon Road, Monipur, Kazipara, Shewrhaparha, Pirerbagh. Barabagh, Agargaon, Senpara, Ibrahimpur, the area between Kochukhet and Bhasantek, north Kafrul, Taltola, Kalyanpur, Shyamoli, Mirpur-1, Mirpur-2, Mirpur-6, Mirpur-7, Ahmadnagar, Paikparha, Shialbarhi, Rupnagar, Eastern Housing, Mirpur Cantonment and surrounding areas. Titas Gas spokesperson Md Wahiduzzaman told bdnews24.com that the supply was yet to recommence due to some complications that arose from shifting of the supply line. But engineers have informed him that gas supply had restarted from 10am, he said. "At least 60 keys are being operated to resume gas supply. Though the work started at 10pm, it's taking a bit more time."....

Published at: 2017-07-15 00:00:06

Bangladesh needs to find innovative ways of financing for achieving the UN-mandated Sustainable Development Goals as traditional funding is 'insufficient' to attain the 'all encompassing' SDGs, a recent government report has found. "The major obstacle for attainment of SDGs for Bangladesh happens to be in the areas of finance, mainly in mobilising domestic resource, scaling up official development assistance and attracting FDI", said the report. The report is the first of its kind in reviewing Bangladesh's SDG progress at the national level while also dissecting some major challenges. "We have considerable challenges in the areas of mobilising domestic resources, efficiency gain in public expenditure, scaling up official development assistance and attracting FDI", it stated. The UN-prescribed Voluntary National Review (VNR) report, which has been prepared by the Planning Commission with support from the UNDP, is set to be presented before the High Level Political Forum (HLPF) of the United Nations currently being held in New York. A high level government delegation, led by Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, is currently in the US for attending the event. Bangladesh is among the 44 countries to present such a VNR report on the two-year progress in SDG attainment. The report, its latest edition, has highlighted the progress the country achieved in areas of seven SDGs (goals 1, 2, 3, 5, 9, 14 and 17). The report analysed that resource generation from domestic and international sources would be one of the most crucial challenges for Bangladesh in achieving the goals. "We need to find innovative ways of financing from both the public and private sectors, development partners and ensure effective and efficient ways for utilisation", it said. The VNR report comes at a time when the government is at the final stage of publishing the 'SDGs Needs Assessment and Financing Strategy' which would estimate the resources needed for achieving the Agenda 2030. The study has found that Bangladesh would require around US$ 1.5 trillion additional resources for full attainment of SDGs from 2017 to 2030, according to Planning Commission sources. Asked for comments, Member of the Planning Commission Professor Dr. Shamsul Alam said the government was aiming to explore innovative financing mode espoused in the report through intense bilateral and multilateral engagements while putting additional focus on domestic resource mobilisation. "We will seek enhanced support from global partners including through South-South, North-South and Triangular Cooperation as well as financing windows like Green Climate fund", said Mr Alam, whose General Economics Division has taken the lead role in preparing the report. Apart from financing, the report also identified a number of challenges in the areas of infrastructure, noting that the proper implementation of the proposed infrastructure strategies will require significant institutional and regulatory reforms. "A case in point can be urban transport sector reform initiatives", the report said. "In reforming urban transport sector, we need to consider many other factors including synchronisation of the initiatives in transport sector with the overall urban management and development strategy". "Obviously, this is a tough task because of cross-cutting issues and multi stakeholders' involvements", it added. When it comes to the power sector, the VNR report said that there are multiple challenges in power generation capacity, transmission, distribution, and diversification of production particularly moving towards renewable energy sources. "Similarly, all other infrastructure investment areas have different levels of structural constraints which require to be addressed", it added. When it comes to the implementation of mega projects, the challenges primarily come in the form of land availability, relocation, protecting and maintaining environmental standard and ensuring local level participation, the report noted. Apart from financing, the prevailing data gap has been a major headache for Bangladesh in chalking out its SDG implementation path, which was also pointed out in the VNR report. The government earlier conducted a data gap analysis. It found that data for only 70 indicators out of a total of 232 is available in existing data generating system of Bangladesh while further 108 can be generated by modifying existing census, survey, etc. To address this prevailing data gap, the VNR report has called for strengthening the capacity of the Bureau of Statistics to spearhead the process of coordination with other data generating agencies so that it can contribute more as the national repository for all kinds of disaggregated data including gender, age, income, and geographic location. "The BBS will also establish an integrated framework for ensuring availability, authenticity and reliability of administrative data collected by different ministries/agencies", the report said.     mehdi.finexpress@gmail.com....

Published at: 2017-07-15 00:00:06

The Mayor Mohammad Hanif Flyover has apparently failed to serve its purpose, as many transport operators are reluctant to use it mainly because of high toll rates and nagging tailbacks at its major exit points. The Tk 23 billion flyover, the longest one in the city, was built with a view to easing traffic congestions at the busiest exit point of the capital and allowing vehicles to reach the Dhaka-Chittagong highway in a short time without facing heavy traffic on the stretch between Gulistan and Jatrabari areas. The flyover partly opened to public on October 11 in 2013 to facilitate smooth movement of people from and to 30 southern and south-western districts, but even after nearly four years of its inauguration, the mega structure having four lanes and six entry and seven exit ramps couldn't draw full attention of the transport operators. Visiting several points of the 11.7 km-long flyover recently, this correspondent found that the roads under and adjacent to it were choked with buses, trucks, pickups, human haulers, rickshaws, vans in the midday, but the traffic at the key entry point of the flyover at Chankharpul was minimal. Talking to the FE, a number of drivers who frequently use this route said they have been avoiding the much-talked-about flyover due to exorbitant toll. They prefer using even the dilapidated roads under the flyover just to save money, not the time. The Orion Infrastructure Ltd. completed the flyover project on build-own-operate-and-transfer basis. The project was initially taken up in 1998. Orion has funded and executed the project. A Canadian construction company designed the flyover and Indian construction firm Simplex Infrastructural Ltd. built it. The then Dhaka City Corporation supervised the entire process. According to the agreement on the flyover construction, Orion will hand over the flyover to the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) after 24 years. During this period, the company will manage the flyover and collect toll from the users, which will help cover the construction cost. Jamal Sheikh, a driver of a Narayanganj-bound bus operator, said, "I usually make two or three up-down trips a day. They (toll collectors) charge Tk 260 for using the flyover one time, meaning I would have to pay Tk 1,560 in toll a day if I use it." Besides, vehicles face traffic congestions at Kutubkhali point of the flyover near Shanir Akhra almost regularly, he said, adding: "It's possible to cross the chaotic area in 10 minutes without using the flyover. Also, I can pick up some extra passengers under the flyover." Meanwhile, most parts of the roads under the Mayor Hanif flyover are in a shambles. The roads are either dilapidated or partly grabbed by markets, shops, construction materials, parked vehicles and garbage, leaving a narrow space for the movement of traffic. This situation is still causing severe traffic congestions like in the past. Nazma Akhter, a housewife who regularly takes her son to school by bus from Janapath intersection at Sayedabad, said the flyover was constructed to ease gridlock in the area, but the traffic jam has increased two-fold instead. "Even there are no road signs under the flyover, which makes it difficult for us to understand which roads go where," she added. Mansur Ali, a traffic constable posted near Tikatuli ramp of the flyover, said majority of the public transport generally use the roads under the flyover to pick up more passengers while private cars and micro-buses mostly use the flyover. According to DSCC, the toll rate for a single trip on the flyover was set at Tk 150 for trucks with six wheels, Tk 200 for trailers, Tk 100 for trucks with four wheels, Tk 150 for buses, Tk 100 for minibuses, Tk 75 for pickup vans, Tk 50 for microbuses, Tk 40 for jeeps, Tk 35 for cars, Tk 10 for auto-rickshaws and Tk 5 for motorbikes. However, Orion has increased the rate by around 70 to 100 per cent -- Tk 260 for trucks with six wheels, Tk 173 for trucks with four wheels, Tk 375 for trailers, Tk 260 for buses, Tk 173 for minibuses, Tk 130 for pickup vans, Tk 85 for microbuses, Tk 70 for jeeps, Tk 60 for cars, Tk 18 for auto-rickshaws and Tk 10 for motorbikes. Several transport operators told the FE that only luxurious coaches and some long-route buses bound for Chittagong, Cox's Bazar and Sylhet use the flyover because of their affordability. On the other hand, some human haulers and short-distance buses use the flyover to pick up passengers from several points of the flyover. Passengers climb the flyover using illegal staircases. However, the flyover management authorities removed most of the staircases recently following a Supreme Court verdict that upheld a High Court order to remove all such staircases installed at several points of the flyover. Orion had appealed against the High Court order, but the three-member Appellate Division bench led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha dismissed the petition. Driver Nure Alam of a Demra-bound human hauler, who would use the flyover but now uses the road under the flyover, said the drivers like him would pay a 'fixed amount', not toll, to the flyover operators and security personals for each trip, who then allowed them to pick up passengers from the middle of the flyover. Dhaka Sarak Paribahan Malik Samity General Secretary Khandaker Enayet Ullah said, "In several meetings with Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and the city corporation, we demanded that a toll rate be fixed on daily basis for passenger buses." But the authorities have shown no interest in reconsidering toll rate, he said, adding: "Now, if any transport owner or driver thinks that avoiding the flyover is more profitable than using it, nobody can force them to do so." Earlier, the Dhaka Sarak Paribahan Malik Samity proposed fixing a toll of Tk 520 a day for passenger buses regardless of the number of trips. A DSCC official involved with the project, wishing not to be named, told the FE that the DSCC authorities have sent letters twice asking the Orion Group to reduce the toll rates and to explain why the toll rates had been increased without the city corporation's permission. But the group hasn't agreed to slash toll rates. Rather, it filed an arbitration case against the DSCC, which is currently under trial. When contacted, the flyover operator declined to make any comment over the toll rate, saying that the decision in this regard is pending before the court.     ahb_mcj2009@yahoo.com....

Published at: 2017-07-15 00:00:06