Like India, Bangladesh also has a potential to be a good source of trained IT people. But after the IT education industry boom in the late nineties nothing has gone right for Bangladesh in this sector. The govt. has not been able to bring submarine Optical fiber cable connection to this country to join into the high speed internet hub. We are still in the dial-up era and linked to the world via V-SAT.People are blaming the quality of IT education in Bangladesh as in this editorial of the The New Nation. But my view is that there is no significant...
January 31, 2004
January 29, 2004
MY GOD IS YOUR GOD
John Kearney, a student at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism has wrote an Op-Ed article urging that US media should stop calling Allah "Allah", and just use the name "God" to signify that Jews, Christians, and Muslims all worship the same deity.
Kearney asserts:
"There is no god but God" is the first of Islam's five pillars. It is Muhammad's refutation of polytheism. Yet to today's non-Muslims, the locution "there is no God but Allah" reads as an affront, a declaration that inflammatory Allah trumps the...
January 27, 2004
EXPLOITING CHILDREN AS CAMEL JOCKEYS
I don't know much about camel racing, which is a traditional sport in the Arab countries. But I have heard plenty of it during recent times as many Bangladeshi children are being exploited by the camel racers. Jockeys being small and lightweight are a winning potential. Mounting camels three times their height, the children - some as young as six - face the risk of being thrown off or trampled. They are often starved to keep underweight. They are brought to Arab countries by child trafficking racket. One women was caught recently at the Dhaka Airport...
MYSTERY DISEASE IN BANGLADESH
Recently I succumbed to strong headache and feverish conditions. A family member raised the question whether I had caught the mystery disease which has taken 15 lives in Northern Bangladesh. But to assure everybody I recuperated shortly. The outbreak of the disease is really of great concern as doctors could not determine in a week what virus is causing the disease, which produces high fever, headache, vomiting and spells of unconsciousness and death at last. However the symptoms the disease could be encephalitis. Samples have been sent to the...
January 24, 2004
WHEN THE RIVERS RUN DRY
The movement of marine transport vessels in Bangladesh waterways have become extremely slow and risky because of rising river beds from siltation. After the establishment of the Farakka Barrage in India during the mid seventies, the length of the waterways of Bangladesh shrank from 24,000 kilometres to some 7,000 kilometres. During winter, due to the lack of water flow the water level has shrunk drastically and siltation took its toll by reducing the total waterways to some 3,000 kilometres. This is a grave news for Bangladesh where water transport...
January 21, 2004
QUOTES OF THE DAY
A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject. - Winston Churchill 1874-1965, British Statesman, Prime MinisterThe most dangerous madmen are those created by religion, and people whose aim is to disrupt society always know how to make good use of them on occasion.- Denis Diderot 1713-1784, French PhilosopherFanaticism obliterates the feelings of humanity.- Edward Gibbon 1737-1794, British Histor...
January 19, 2004
TASLIMA NASRIN'S EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
Taslima's latest visit to Kolkata is creating much controversy. Take this and this for instance. She is always in the news.Despite the clerics latest fatwa "a prize of 20000 Indian Rupee($440) for the person who smears tar on her face", she is valiant as ever.Read the latest interview where she asserts:I am not scared of anyone. I will write and publish my books. Why should people accept such a decision in a free state. It is for them to decide what...
Grameen Bank Model helping people in Rhode Island, USA
Thrive, based on the international Grameen Bank from Bangladesh, brings tools from the village for Western women to gain financial independence. The goal of this program is to create economic self-sufficiency among predominantly struggling women in Woonsocket city and surrounding communities. Read here for more.Bangladesh is proud of Dr. M. Yunus and his Grameen Bank which has become a micro credit icon in the world. The Grameen Bank was started in Bangladesh in 1976 as an action-research project that attempted to provide tiny loans to very poor...
TWO BANGLADESHES
There have been reactions from all quarters on the recent treatment of the minority Ahmadiyya sect in Bangladesh. The govt. has recently banned the Ahmadiyya publications to ease tensions created by a fanatic group of right wing Islami activists. Their claim is that the govt. should declare Ahmadiyyas as non muslim. I really don't understand what good that will bring to others.The Ahmadiyya movement was founded in the late 19th century in what is now Pakistan with the professed goal of reviving Islam by stressing non-violence and tolerance. The...
David Hookes in coma
Australian cricket legend David Hookes clings to life in a coma after being knocked to the ground by a pub-bouncer in a scuffle outside a Melbourne hotel last night. - Sidney Morning herald reports.
Hookes, best known for his sleazy remarks on cricket, was coaching the Victorian cricket team as well as sports commentating.
If you are a cricket fan then you will have plenty of amusement (and anger) reading David Hookes' thoughts. e.g:
"Ganguly came to me and said 'It's our first day on the tour, we should just bat'. So once...
January 15, 2004
January 13, 2004
BLOG ROUNDUP
Its time for another Blog roundup. I will bring to you some interesting links found on various blogs.
* FishBase is a global information system with all you ever wanted to know about fishes. It is a relational database with information to cater to different professionals such as research scientists, fisheries managers, zoologists and many more (ofcourse with some fee). FishBase on the web contains practically all fish species known to science. (via worldchanging)
* Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) is a scientific...
A COLLECTION OF INDIAN DIAMONDS
The second annual Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) is set to be celebrated on 16th of January in New Delhi, India which is an attempt - and more than symbolic - to bring the 20 million-strong Great Indian family spread across the globe back to their native land, physically, emotionally - and financially (reports Asia Times).Over 2,000 people of Indian origin worldwide are converging on the capital. They include Noble Prize laureate Sir V S Naipaul, management Guru C K Prahalad, economist Jagdish Bhagwati, entrepreneur and philanthropist Lord Raj Bagri...
QUOTES OF THE DAY
The most important part of education is proper training in the nursery. PLATO- BC 427?-347?, Greek Philosopher An effeminate education weakens both the mind and the body. Edgar Quinet- 1803-1875, French Poet, Historian, Politician...
NEED FOR A CHANGE IN EDUCATION SYSTEM
The Bangladeshi education system is divided into three different branches. These branches are: a) The English Medium, b) The Bengali Medium, and c) The Religious Branch. Many of the school and colleges are Government or semi Government. Tution fees are heavily subsidized in full Government institutions but they lack sufficient infrastructures. Students are free to choose between government or private institutions provided that they have the means. The detailed structure of the mainstream education system in Bangladesh can be found here: But the...
INCREASING NUMBER OF PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES IN BANGLADESH
As the literacy rate is rising in Bangladesh, there is an ever-growing demand for institutions for higher education. Each year more and more students are passing SSC (10th class) & HSC (12th Class). But there are not enough Colleges, Universities or other vocational institutes to accommodate all of them. The conventional education system up to mid nineties has been supported by massively subsidized education through a very small number of state-run institutions to a very narrow spectrum of students chosen out of fierce competition. The Govt....
January 12, 2004
ENGRISH FOR FUN
I often feel disgusted when I find a grammatical or spelling error in my post. As English is my second language I am trying to develop myself and I hope that I would be excused by my readers. But any criticism is welcome.Recently I found the link to Engrish. If you want to enjoy some hilarious mistakes in English then this is the right place for you.The site explains:What is Engrish?Engrish can be simply defined as the humorous English mistakes that appear in Japanese advertising and product design.Is Engrish found only in Japan? No, Engrish can...
January 11, 2004
WHAT FAME + BABBLEFISH CAN TURN YOU TO
The result of the Asian Weblog award 2003 has been announced some days back. I did not notice it till I saw some unknown websites linking to me. They have posted the list of the winners (including me) with their comments. One of them is a Japanese one kept by Matsunaga Hideaki. I tried babblefish to translate the site and I almost fell from the chair reading the comment for my site:
Bangladesh: The 3rd World View
"Point of view of the 3rd world" of lesbianism one. English. Considerably it seems like serious...
January 08, 2004
THE AUTORICKSHAW SCANDAL
It was a bold move by the government to phase out 40,000 petrol-driven two-stroke three-wheelers to cut air pollution in Dhaka. The replacement is compressed natural gas (CNG) autorickshaws. But the government allowed only one agency Uttara Motors to import 10,000 CNG autorickshaws. They have sold 8,000 vehicles to local buyers since January 2002.Now here's the truth. The CNG Autos made in India costs around 90000 Indian Rupees. The Showroom price...
BEWARE OF 2 WAY MIRROR
Jivha tells that there is another threat to your privacy lurking behind the two way mirrors in places like female changing rooms or hotel bedrooms. I am not sure whether these are actually happening but here is a clue to detect 2 way mirrors:
CONDUCT THIS SIMPLE TEST: Place the tip of your fingernail against the reflective surface and if there is a GAP between your fingernail and the image of the nail, then it is a GENUINE mirror. However, if your fingernail DIRECTLY TOUCHES the image of your nail, then BEWARE, IT IS A...
January 06, 2004
January 05, 2004
THE COMING OF AN AMERICAN EMPIRE
M Abdul Hafiz, former Director General of Bangladesh Institute of International Strategic Studies (BIIS) has written one article titled The coming of the American Empire criticizing the role of America in today's global affairs. Some excerpts:There had been rise and fall of empires in the past and each one of them had its rival to contend with. But America is not only the world's sole superpower, it is also the sole empire -- something that never happened before in history -- a sole empire global in scope that seeks to reinvent the nations of the...
MORE GOOD NEWS
After many bad news (specially in the recent months) we have some good news at last.* Bangladesh foreign exchange reserves hit 8-year high: due to higher remittance and export earnings, disbursement of foreign aid and foreign investment.* Pakistan resumes air links with Nepal and Bangladesh: after a two-year ban was lifted on Pakistani flights entering Indian airspace.* SAARC Summit starts with high hopes: offering a key chance for its giants India and Pakistan to meet for the first time since near war in 2002. Agendas include free trade and anti-terrorism...
MORE TEA PER PERSON
In a recent report it is feared that as tea export earnings falls by 60pc, spiking local demand may turn Bangladesh into an importer.Tea was introduced in Bengal by the British in the late Sixteenth century. Historians tell that tea was distributed free to create addiction and taste. The British have established the industry here and Bangladesh is the 5th largest tea exporter in the world. Last five years export figures show the significant drop because of the fact that "Internal consumption is going up 3.5 percent every year against 1 percent...
January 03, 2004
What did you learn in school today?
- a song by Pete SeegerWhat did you learn in school today,Dear little boy of mine?I learned that Washington never told a lie.I learned that soldiers never die.I learned that everybody's free,And that's what the teacher said to me.I learned that Government must be strong;It's always right and never wrong;Our leaders are the finest menAnd we elect them again and again.I learned that war is not so bad;I learned about the great ones we have had;We fought in Germany and in FranceAnd someday I might get my chance.That's what I learned in school today,That's...
CHILLY DAYS
Bangladesh is being hit by a cold wave across the country. At least 51 people, mostly children and the elderly, died in the last three days.The temperature is not that low, as you would imagine hearing this news. It is around 9-12 degrees Celsius, the northern region being the lowest. But it is well below the usual average 15 degrees in winter. Extreme foggy conditions are making things worse specially hampering Air traffic and marine transports. Tiny dewdrops are falling like rain and its even biting in Dhaka where the temperature was around 11-14...
January 01, 2004
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
2003 was not an year to remember for many reasons. Terrorism, war and many deaths marked the whole year.I wish that 2004 would be somewhat different. We want peace, stability and wish that human virtues would be uphold in every corner of the world.But it will be difficult. You call it a jinx but Blogger & Blogspot were down when I tried to post this message. What an way to start the new year. But there is no fun in the life's adventures without hurdl...
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