Policey Guideline by January 2012

While BELA is waging court battles against import of toxic ships, the industry minister told the parliament that a policy guideline for environment-friendly ship-breaking is to be finalized by January 2012
The country is going to have an "environment-friendly" ship-breaking policy by the end of January 2012, said industries minister Dilip Barua while responding to a questing in the parliament. He said that his ministry has set the end of this January as a fresh deadline for finalizing the "environment-friendly" ship-breaking policy. The minister also said that the policy guideline would be finalized with a view to helping the sector grow without causing any harm to the environment.
Earlier on September 17, the minister had said that the government would finalize the ship-breaking and recycling policy be October of this year. The Ministry of Industries has already posted the draft policy on its website inviting public opinion on it. The minister further said that ship-breaking has been brought under the industries ministry to treat it as a full-fledged industry.
The ship-breaking industry, developing on the seashores of Chittagong, is the main source of the raw materials used by some 500 private sector re-rolling mills and nearly 50 steel mills that produce mild steel rods, bars, and angles at affordable prices. The growing demand for steel products in the country ha encouraged a good number of people to engage in the industry that proved to be very rewarding in terms of profit and employment generation.
But the safety fo ship-breaking works has been often neglected in the past. Besides, the environmental activists have criticized the environment of the country.
Meanwhile, the Norwegian government has offered support for the development of a sustainable and environment-friendly ship-breaking industry in Bangladesh. The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperating (Norad) will provide financial support under a project which will help ensure safe and environment-friendly ship recycling activities.
Norwegian ambassador in Dhaka Ragne Birte Lund conveyed the message to industries minister Dilip Barua at a meeting recently. The meeting decided to from an executive committee with all stakeholders for the project titled "Bangladesh Project for the Safe and Environment-friendly Sound Recycling of Ships"
Under the project's first phase a study will be conducted on evaluation of impact of the recycling industry on the environment. The minister emphasized that Bangladesh government is determined to build a sustainable and environment-friendly ship-breaking and ship recycling industry in the country.
He mentioned that some 85 percent of the country's total demand for steel is met by the ship-breaking industry. "The government has already finalized the draft guidelines for the safe and environment-friendly ship-breaking and ship recycling industry" he said.
On the other hand, the Supreme Court had directed the government to formulate rules to make ship-breaking industry polluting-free for the environment and safe for its workers.
A seven-number beach of the Appellate Division headed by chief justice Md. Muzammel Hossain directed the industries secretary to appear before it along with a copy of gazette notification on the rule at noon on December 14. The court come up with the order following a fresh petition filed by Bangladesh Environment Lawyers' Association (BELA) against a High Court order that extended its order on import of toxic ships on condition.
The court on March 7 in a verdict permitted import of toxic ships for two month and directed the government to formulate rules in the meantime. The extension of two months was pursuant of a petition filed by Bangladesh Ship-breakers' Association.
Subsequently, BELA filed a petition with the Appellate Division challenging the extension order of the HC. The Appellate Division held a hearing on the petition on Monday, November 21

Brad Pitt Talks to Suicidal Fans

Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt does it all. He acts. He has kids with Angelina Jolie. He looks handsome no mater how he grows his hair. And he even helped out a distraught man. When a 30 something struggling said he was considering suicide, Pitt did not flinch. "You can be down, but then you come back up again, and every failure can lead to success," he replied.

Justin Bieber Took Paternity Test

Justin Bieber

Justin Bieber was tangled in a scandal after Mariah Yeater filed a suit against him claming the singer had fathered her infat ow wichild. The 17 year old artist revealed during an episode of The Late Show with Davie Letterman that he had indeed supplied a DNA sample.

"Yeah, I took it," he said, when asked if the had completed the DNA test. "They just swab your mouth." He also said that he understood that when one is in the spotlight people can say whatever they like.

One Psychiatrist for Evey 800,000 People!

An alarming 16.1 percent of Bangladeshis over the age of eighteen are suffering from mental disorders, but the country does not have adequate treatment facilities. There is roughly only one psychiatrist for every 800,000 people. The total number of psychiatric specialists is 190 and most of them offer their services in the urban areas. Specialists say, one person in every 100 people is afflicted by comples mental disease and 10 are by other nental diseases. Of them, 16.5 percent have no idea about treatment facility.

Dr. Janu Shamsunnahar of Psychology department in BSMMU said that people are not often aware that they could be suffering from mental diseases. In many cases, the patients turn to village fakirs, Ayurvedic practitioners or pirs instead of going to doctors, she added.

Director of National Institute of Mental Health, Dr. Golam Rabbani, explained that superstition, erroneous beliefs and negative attitudes are the main impediments to successful treatment of mental patients in the country. Often people try to avoid admitting that their family member suffers from mental disease due to social stigma attached to it.

NIMH, BSMMU, Dhaka Medical College hospital, Pabna Mental Hospital and other government hospital and clinics also offer treatment facilities for mental patients.

Beyonce gives nascence to missy female in NYC

Beyonce

After months of rumors virtually her pregnancy - including that it was faux, Beyonce is now said to be tightlipped to gift modification.

She is at Lenox Structure Infirmary in New Dynasty and is "nearly to" communicate her rank nestling, according to the Daily Information and ABC Interestingness.

The stuff attributes the interest to "sources" and says that the superstar artificer has chequered in under the establish of Ingrid Town.

She and her save, Jay-Z, are said to screw rented out fourth base for $1.3 cardinal. ABC Information reports that she checkered in Friday night.

Various section guards were spotted patrolling the part of the hospital Sat nighttime. And a Lenox Elevation staffer official to the Regular Program that a longanimous titled Ingrid Vocaliser was in a "confinement dwell."

Western Marine Shipyard Limited

Western Marine Shipyard Limited

Bangladesh is more commonly associated with appalling images of the deplorable conditions of our thriving ship breaking industry, but this company provides images from the opposite end it is a gleaming retrospective of our budding shipbuilding industry. Multi-prupose cargo vessels, takers, ocean-going ice-class vessels, ferries, pontoons and the list will go on, much to the relief of not only national clients, but international ones too. November 20,2011, witnessed the signing of yet another international ship-building deal and 2012 is the date set for the completion of a Tk 900 crore project with the German company Grona Shipping GMbH & Co. A study completed by the Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute speculated that in less than ten years, ship building might become the third highest foreign exchange earner, if provided adequate support and one can surely expect Western Marine to be a forerunner into this future.

Westin, Dhaka

Westin, Dhaka

A favorite with all 'Dhaka Snobs', the five star hotel bring good tidings of business expansion in the future years. The hotel caused quite a stir with its decision to go public and now awaits the verdict of the stock market regulator on its proposal to be listed under the Dahaka Stock Exchange. Westin, which belongs to Unique Hotels and Resorts Ltd, plans to float 2.6 core ordinary shares of Tk 10. According to the IPO (Initial Public Offering) submitted, a fixed-offering priced each share at Tk. 115. The par share gains of Unique is Tk 5.85, with a net asset vale of Tk 77.62 for each. Although a positive verdict seems to be the only possible outcome, eyes are still glued on to nest year, with fingers crossed.