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Villagers suffer from waterlogging on the outskirts of Faridpur town
For over four years about 300 families have remained waterlogged in their own village due to dumping of sand extracted from Padma River.
The affected people at Aijuddin Matabbar Dagi village in Dicrirchar union on the outskirts of Faridpur town blame their miseries on some sand traders who dump their extracted sand blocking trapping rain and river water in their croplands.
On a recent visit to the area the UNB correspondent found that the problem was caused first by the water that comes along with the newly-mined sand. Over the years it got worse because of rain and flood waters, according to villagers.
READ: Chronic waterlogging adds to Bhabdaha's pain in winter
Many have erected small bamboo bridges to come out from their homes due to the stagnant water.
Local people alleged that there is no drainage system here as lands were occupied by the influential people and the local administration did not take any steps despite repeated complaints made to the local UP member and chairman.
Domestic airports are getting face-lift to offer quality services to passengers: CAAB
Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh (CAAB) has taken initiatives to modernise and expand all domestic airports of the country as well as the quality of passenger services.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority, measures have been taken to modernize and expand the domestic terminals of seven airports in the country.
Apart from three international airports- Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka, Shah Amanat International Airport, Chattogram and Osmani International Airport, Sylhet there are domestic airports in Cox's Bazar, Rajshahi, Saidpur, Nilphamari and Barisal.
Steps to modernise all domestic airports in phases
Asked about all initiatives, CAAB Chairman Air vice Marshal M Mofizur Rahman told UNB that work is underway to enhance the quality of passenger services at the seven domestic airports, including the domestic terminal at Shahjalal International Airport.
He said that the number of passengers on domestic flights has increased a lot in the country at present. Work on the landing terminal at Dhaka Airport has already started. "We hope that the expansion work will be completed soon. Everything else will be done quickly."
The chairman said there is a plan to expand the domestic terminal of Dhaka airport by the middle of this year.
The work on expanding the domestic terminal will be completed in Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport first.
READ: Parliamentary body visits Cox’s Bazar Airport project
A budget has been earmarked for phasing out the domestic terminal buildings of all other airports in the same manner. Permission has already been sought from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism. The internal terminal will be further modernized.
Besides, the work of transforming Cox's Bazar Airport into an International airport is going on and the domestic terminal will be more modernized there.
According to CAAB, the initiative has been taken to handle the increasing pressure of domestic passengers as well as to enhance the quality of services. A 8,000 sq ft floor is being constructed on the second floor of the old terminal building inside Dhaka airport. Half of that floor will have two international standard lines and the other half will have passenger seats and other facilities. There will be an air conditioning system with elevators.
READ: Dhaka airport's 3rd terminal to 'boost' trade
He further said modern scanning machines, security equipment, two international standard lounges, seating capacity of more than 300 passengers, smoking zone, diaper changing station and mothers' corner will be set up at the domestic terminal at Dhaka Airport.
Increasing pressure on domestic flights
In this regard, the State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Md Mahbub Ali told UNB that steps have been taken to modernize and expand all domestic airports in the country further as per the directives of the prime minister to enhance the quality of passenger services at airports in line with various countries in the world.
He said, "Domestic flights within the country's existing passenger transport system have been increasing at a significant rate in the last few years. The people of the country are now much more economically advanced."
Foreigners, businesspeople, and tourists are traveling more on domestic flights to save time, so the number of passengers is increasing day by day. That is why the project has been taken with emphasis on all domestic airport works, he added.
He said the waiting time of passengers at the domestic terminal in Dhaka will be made comfortable with more facilities.
All the domestic airports in the country will be arranged properly. "We have taken the initiative to provide all the facilities of the international airport to be available in the domestic airports too," he added.
According to CAAB, the security arrangements at the internal terminal are being further updated. Internal terminals will be equipped with security equipment to prevent crime. Security will be further strengthened on all routes.
Services need to be enhanced both in airports and airlines
Biman Bangladesh Airlines, US-Bangla Airlines and NovoAir operate domestic flights. However, US-Bangla Airlines has the largest number of flights.
Kamrul Islam, General Manager (Public Relations) of US-Bangla Airlines, told UNB that the number of passengers on domestic flights has increased by almost 300 per cent in 7-8 years.
Passenger facilities have not increased accordingly and the quality of passenger service has remained the same, he said.
He said airlines should not just increase the quality of passenger service. The airport must also have quality of service. In all, both airports and airlines must provide the same quality services to passengers.
He said passenger lounges have been set up in Dhaka, Cox's Bazar and Rajshahi. Similarly, the quality of passenger service needs to be enhanced with all facilities including passenger lounges at all other domestic airports.
Govt aims for 10% electricity from renewables by 2025
The 8th Five Year Plan contains various plans to meet a target of generating 10 percent of total electricity from renewable energy by 2025.
Greater involvement of the private sector is encouraged towards fulfilling the government's renewable energy policy in the document.
Considering the dwindling gas reserves in the country, the use of coal as an alternative fuel in power generation is not ruled out.
The document mentioned that the importance of the power sector is immense in the socio- economic development of the country and in improving the living standards of the people.
“The government is giving top priority to the development of the power sector.”
The budgetary allocations for the power and energy sector as projected in the document for the 2023-24 fiscal is Tk 305.26 billion, while the projection for 2022-23 fiscal is Tk 289.62 billion and it is Tk 274.84 billion in the running 2021-22 fiscal.
READ: Electricity demand may reach 15,500 MW this year during irrigation season
The allocation for the sector in the 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21 fiscals was Tk 344.04 billion, Tk 331.32 billion and Tk 237.77 billion respectively.
The document stated that the government is working to ensure quality and uninterrupted supply of electricity to all at a reasonable cost through integrated development of power generation, transmission and distribution sectors.
To ensure balanced power supply, the government has already formulated short, medium and long term plans and taken up various programs to improve the current state of power generation.
The 'Power System Master Plan 2016' has been formulated for the development of the power sector.
Under this plan, the government is working to achieve the target of generating 40,000 MW by 2030 and 60,000 MW by 2041.
The official document said that the government is implementing new plans to generate electricity based on coal, diesel-furnace oil, nuclear power and renewable energy by solving the existing problem of power generation through gas-fired power plants.
Research and development in this sector will continue to encourage innovation for efficient use of energy and power, it said.
At present, the country has a power generation capacity of 22,023 MW (including captive and renewable), and is in the process of setting up another 38 power plants with a combined capacity of a further 14,115 MW.
At present only about 722 MW of electricity is being generated from renewable sources. The government has taken steps to develop renewable energy with future energy security in mind.
As the socio-economic condition of the country improves, the demand for energy is also increasing rapidly. Natural gas is an important energy resource of Bangladesh, which supplies most of the country's total commercial energy.
Therefore, onshore and offshore seismic survey activities are being conducted on a large scale for domestic gas exploration.
There are currently 27 discovered gas fields in the country, of which 20 are in production.
In order to build a sustainable energy supply system, initiatives have been taken to reduce energy consumption, that is to say make efficiency gains, of upto 20 percent by 2030. The Power Division has taken steps to generate additional power by conserving, repairing and increasing efficiency of old power plantsInitiatives have also been taken to install pre-paid gas meters to prevent gas wastage and increase energy efficiency.
Meanwhile, two lakh pre-paid gas meters have been installed in the Dhaka metropolis and 60,000 in the Chattogram area.
During the period of 2020-23, there are plans to install 120,000 pre-paid gas meters in the Dhaka metropolitan area, 50,000 in Jalalabad gas-affiliated areas and 300,000 in the Chattogram area.
Two floating storage and re-gasification units (FSRUs) with a capacity of about 1000 million cubic feet per day have been set up at Maheshkhali through which about 600 million cubic feet of LNG are being supplied daily to the national gas grid.
READ: 25% electricity from renewables by 2030: SREDA proposes, GOB disposes?
To meet the growing demand for energy through import of fuel, projects such as taking oil directly from deep sea through pipeline, and supply of
oil from Chattogram to Dhaka through pipeline are being implemented.
The government has also planned to build a land- based LNG terminal at Payra in Patuakhali under the medium-term budget framework, the official document stated.
Local government to be strengthened for inclusive economic growth, says official document
The government is focusing on strengthening the local government system and rural development to make economic growth inclusive.
According to a budgetary document, to ensure strengthening the local government system, total expenditure in the rural development sector will increase by an average of 8.7 per cent to Tk. 475.12 billion by 2023-24 fiscal.
The estimation for the local government and rural development in 2023-24 fiscal is Tk 477.67 billion, while it will be Tk 435.34 billion for 2022-23 fiscal.
Read:Tomato cultivation transforms lives of Bagerhat farmers
The allocation for the sector is Tk 421.93 billion for the running 2021-22 fiscal whereas it was Tk 424.26 billion in the revised budget of 2020-21 fiscal, Tk 323.90 billion in 2019-20 fiscal and Tk 313.55 billion in 2018-19 fiscal.
The government has adopted a realistic plan of action to ensure potable water supply across the country including the capital city of Dhaka, reduce water logging in urban areas, ensure 100 per cent sanitation, and conserve and use groundwater instead of underground water sources.
The government is implementing multi-faceted activities to develop the country's economy, according to the official document.
Tomato cultivation transforms lives of Bagerhat farmers
Tomato cultivation has changed the fate of many farmers in Bagerhat.
Biswajit Baral, a farmer of Ashok Nagar village of Chitalmari upazila set an example in this area by cultivating tomatoes. He cultivated early varieties of the winter tomatoes and now he earns a lot from it.
Seeing his success, many of the villagers started cultivating the vegetable.
The tomatoes grown here go to different parts of the country including Dhaka, Chattogram, Chapainawabganj, Noakhali, Hatia and Barisal, reports our local correspondent.
Visiting the field of Ashok Nagar village, it was seen that thousands of tomato plants were lined up on both sides of the fields. The plants are full of small to large green and red tomatoes.
Men and women of different ages are picking tomatoes from the plants. This is the same scenario as far as the eye can see in the field.
Besides, tomato cultivation has been seen in different villages of Chitalmari including Santoshpur, Umajuri, Charbaniari, Paschimpara, Garibpur, Kharamkhali.
Different varieties of tomatoes named Haitom, Chakra, Major, Beautiful and Beautiful-2 are being cultivated in this area.
READ: Tomato cultivation: Bumper harvest and good price bring joy to farmers in Rajshahi
According to the Department of Agriculture, the seeds of these high yielding hybrids are from India, China and Thailand.
Biswajit Baral, a 38-year-old millionaire who cultivates tomatoes, turned to agriculture after passing HSC from Vocational. He has revolutionized tomato cultivation.
Besides, he is involved in growing seasonal agricultural products and pisciculture
Govt focuses on digital and vocational education to build skilled manpower: Official document
The government has prioritised vocational and digital education at secondary and higher levels in a mid-term plan that seeks to create jobs and skilled manpower, according to an official document.
The plan (FY2021-22 to FY2023-24) envisages using science and technology education as a key strategy for development and poverty alleviation.
Apart from expanding vocational education the plan seeks to develop necessary infrastructure for digital education.
It also underscores the need for increasing the financial opportunities for teachers and encouraging activities related to creative talent exploration.
To this end, according to an official document, following the 8th Five Year Plan, SDGs 2030 and Vision 2041, appropriate activities and projects are being taken by ensuring quality higher education in all fields, encouraging students to do research, ensuring information technology based education, expansion of science based education, encouraging women in higher education, reducing the dropout rate, etc. as set under the National Education Policy 2010.
The objectives are to improve the overall quality of education, eliminating inequalities in education, improving quality and expanding education.
The document said that the government is currently implementing the 'Secondary Education Development Program'.
Activities under this include- expansion of infrastructure and setting up of new infrastructure with the help of existing development projects to enhance the capacity of secondary and higher secondary education, setting up of Upazila Training and Resource Centers under integrated education information management program, expansion of MPO schemes in private schools, provision of scholarships for outstanding students, and training of teachers.
During the COVID- 19 transition, online classes at secondary and higher secondary levels and teaching on important subjects on television under the title of 'My school in my house' have been introduced.
The Technical and Madrasa Education Division has placed emphasis on job-oriented technical and vocational education to facilitate the development of skilled human resources.
Some steps have already been taken to expand technical and vocational education, ensure job-focused education, and attract the general public towards technical and vocational education, said the document.
For example, projects for making computer/ technical education compulsory, organizing skill competitions, setting up technical schools and colleges in 329 upazilas along with the existing 100 technical schools and colleges, setting up women's polytechnics in 4 divisional cities, and setting up 4 engineering universities in 4 divisions are ongoing.
The ministry of primary and mass education has taken multifaceted initiatives to ensure quality and universal primary education, and has adopted and implemented a number of development activities.
For example, the ministry has nationalised 26,193 private primary schools.
It has started using mobile banking for stipends to about 14 million students across the country by making payment to their mothers on their mobile phones.
Further, infrastructure of government primary and modernised primary schools has been developed, free textbooks are distributed, and computers and multimedia are provided in schools.
In addition, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has started broadcasting "Learn at Home" lessons on television to keep students focused on lessons, and lessons are being broadcast on radio and community radio for students in remote areas.
In the medium term, the ministry will provide quality pre-primary and
primary education, basic education, ICT, English, sub-cluster training to teachers.
One of the main objectives of the ministry of science and technology is to build a science and technology-minded nation.
The ministry has undertaken research activities on, and formulated
policies and laws related to, science and technology.
In the medium term, as per the document, the main development priorities of the ministry will be providing fellowships in MS, PhD and post-doctoral courses at home and abroad for higher education in science, completion of various feasibility studies for construction of nuclear power plants in southern Bangladesh.
It also included providing world-class specialised library services for students and researchers, discovering low-cost tide and web power generation methods.
The other priorities are developing infrastructure and human resources for marine resource research, improving the quality of industrial products, and ensuring the quality of food and food products.
Light pollution in Bangladesh: A big blow to nature
Great writers are said to be night owls as they find the night more productive than the day even though there are debates over body rhythms and the writing process.
“I often think that the night is more alive and more richly coloured than the day,” says Vincent Van Gogh, a Dutch post-impressionist painter, while Mahatma Gandhi, a great Indian political philosopher, says, “In the midst of darkness, light persists.”
But today it is nearly impossible to find natural darkness even at night. This is not good, not good at all, said experts.
They stressed the need for raising awareness against the nighttime excessive artificial lighting in Dhaka, considering its dire impacts on the biological clock of the human bodies and lives of other animals including birds, bugs and insects that navigate based on light.
Read:Experts lament lack of steps to check air pollution in Dhaka city
Though light pollution is a new phenomenon in the country, some major cities in the world have started acting against the nighttime excessive lighting as it badly affects the mental and physical health of the humans and the lives of other animals, they said.
Alongside controlling air, noise and other environmental pollution, the authorities concerned should now think about the nighttime light pollution also to protect public health and ecosystem as well as save electricity by limiting excessive outdoor lighting, the experts said.
Most recently, a video has gone viral on the social media that some sparrows took shelter inside a house in Dhaka, being frightened by excessive lightings and sounds generated by fireworks and Fanus (sky lantern) during the 31st night celebrations.
Public health expert Dr MH Chowdhury Lelin said every animal leads its life through a circadian clock, but the light pollution changes the biological clock keeping serious impacts on mental and physical health.
“The excessive lighting causes an overstimulated nervous system, headache, sleeplessness, high blood pressure, high heartbeat, irritable mood and vision power of a man. So, it ultimately hampers the normal activities of a human body and one’s mental health,” he said.
Dr Lelin, also an environmental activist, said the nighttime excessive lighting hampers the sleeping pattern of the human and most birds and other wildlife which badly affect their normal lives during the day.
Besides, he said, the nighttime artificial lighting severely affected the nocturnal animals that they can’t intake foods due to the light pollution. Even the nighttime lighting has an adverse impact on plants. So, the light pollution affects the whole ecosystem.
The excessive indoor lighting despite having enough light during the daytime is also considered light pollution, said Dr Lelin.
Biomedical scientist and educationist Prof Dr Liaquat Ali said the light pollution can elicit melatonin suppression, though the hormone acts as an antioxidant.
“If the melatonin secretion declines, it damages its antioxidant effect, disturbs biological clock and immunity. So, the light pollution may cause different diseases like obesity, diabetes and cancer,” he said.
It also has adverse impacts on mental health, creating depression and disturbing sleep pattern, said Dr Liaquat Ali.
Consumers brace for a big hike in gas price amid dwindling supply
As gas pressure drops due to its short supply, consumers in many areas of the city are feeling the pinch of the crisis.
Many families just get an hour or so, usually early in the morning, to cook the entire day’s meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Many others don’t even get a moment to light their gas burners from dawn to dusk.
In such a terrible condition, they said, the proposal for raising gas price came to them as an absolute mockery.
READ: Gas supply suspended in B’Baria as pipeline gets damaged
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid, however, said he prefers only a 5-10 per cent hike in the prices of gas, particularly for the household consumers.
His comments came in the wake of state-run gas distributors’ recent proposal to double the gas price for household customers.
Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Limited, the largest gas supply entity for Dhaka city and adjoining districts, in a release on January 12, informed the consumers will experience low pressure in gas supply for 10 days during 12-21 January due to technical reasons.
As per Titas website, the largest gas distribution entity’s command area includes Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Narsingdi, Tangail, Manikganj, Mymensingh, Kishoreganj, Jamalpur, and Munshiganj where over 2.8 million consumers receive gas from the Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company.
The notified 10 days are over, but the crisis still persists. In many areas, it has aggravated.
Pandemic's fallout: A shrinking middle-class and the 'new poor'
The pandemic has had a damaging impact on both urban and rural Bangladesh -- while many lost their jobs in cities and returned to their native villages, households after households plunged into poverty in the countryside.
Since the imposition of the first lockdown in 2020, closures of small businesses like grocery shops in the rural and semi-rural areas have meant less income available for families. Covid-induced supply chain disruptions reduced farm outputs, hitting hard the farmers and those running agri enterprises.
Read: Govt to widen social safety coverage to protect poor from pandemic loss
In fact, for many households in Bangladesh, Covid wiped out their entire life savings -- many tucked into their financial cushion to ensure two square meals a day for their families and cover the basic healthcare expenses. The financial aid by the government indeed helped, but helped a little only.
As health experts warn of an imminent third wave of Covid, economists say that a large chunk of small traders across rural Bangladesh and the erstwhile middle-class (who migrated back from cities) have been hit hard by the pandemic-induced liquidity crunch.
According to Prof Mustafizur Rahman of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, a large portion of the population above the poverty line in rural Bangladesh -- the middle-class -- has fallen below the economic marker. "They are now among the marginalised population or the 'new poor'," he said.
Rani Sagar lake wears colourful look as migratory birds flock despite risks
As the winter sets in Ramrai Ranisagar lake in this northern district wears a festive look with the arrival of chirping birds and thousands of visitors to watch them play in the water.
This year also the famed lake, largest in the area, has come alive with hundreds of migratory birds flocking on it from far away to escape freezing cold in Serbia and surrounding areas.
Also known as Rani Sagar the lake is famous for its natural beauty. The arrival of the colourful birds accentuates its charm attracting tourists from all across Bangladesh.
Also read: Migratory birds battle poachers in Khulna
During the day the birds frolic in the lake’s water and when the sun sets they take shelter in the litchi orchard around the water body.
Located four km from the Ranisankail upazila headquarters the lake has been one of the country’s sanctuaries for winter birds who love to spend some time in relatively warm weather in Bangladesh.
Unfortunately, these guest birds do not often get the hospitality they deserve.
Read Visit Baikka Beel, Hail Haor, Sreemangal: Buoyant art of nature in a paradise of birds
At this lake in particular the pollution in the water has become a hazard for the birds.