Kamikaze

ইমরান-হাসিনার টেলিফোনে কথা! ইন্দো-বাংলা সম্পর্কে ফাটলের শঙ্কা দিল্লির তাদের মত, "বাংলাদেশ-পাকিস্তানের প্রধানমন্ত্রীর ফোনে কথা এবং জম্মু-কাশ্মীর ও সীমান্ত নিয়ে আলোচনা খুব দুর্লভ।" কলকাতা: চলতি সপ্তাহের প্রথমে টেলিফোনে কথা হয়েছে বাংলাদেশ ও পাকিস্তানের প্রধানমন্ত্রীর (Pak-Bangladesh telephonic conversation)। আলোচনার বিষয়বস্তু ছিল ইন্দো-চিন ও ইন্দো-নেপাল সীমান্ত সমস্যা। এমনটাই জানতে পেরেছে নয়াদিল্লি (New Delhi)। পাশাপাশি সূত্রের খবর, পাক প্রধানমন্ত্রী "ভারত অধিকৃত জম্মু-কাশ্মীর" নিয়েও শেখ হাসিনার কাছে অভিযোগ করেছেন। আর এতেই কিছুটা উদ্বেগ বেড়েছে ভারতের। তাদের মত, "বাংলাদেশ-পাকিস্তানের প্রধানমন্ত্রীর ফোনে কথা এবং জম্মু-কাশ্মীর (Talks on J&K) ও সীমান্ত নিয়ে আলোচনা খুব দুর্লভ।" যদিও বাংলাদেশের তরফে কাশ্মীর বা সীমান্ত প্রসঙ্গ উত্থাপন করা হয়নি। শুধু সে দেশের বন্যা ও করোনা সংক্রমণ নিয়ে কথা হয়েছে। যদিও বিষয়টি লঘু করতে দেশের প্রাক্তন বিদেশ সচিব কে শ্রীনিবাসন বলেছেন, "দুই আঞ্চলিক দেশের প্রধানমন্ত্রীদের মধ্যে কথা বলায় কোনও আকস্মিকতা নেই। আর যেহেতু দু'টি দেশই ইসলাম অধ্যুষিত। সেখানে কাশ্মীর প্রসঙ্গ থাকবে। এটাই বলাবাহুল্য।" এদিকে, এই ফোন বৈঠক প্রসঙ্গে বিদেশ মন্ত্রক শুক্রবার বলেছে, "বাংলাদেশের সঙ্গে ভারতের সম্পর্ক ঐতিহাসিক ও দীর্ঘ। আমরা জম্মু-কাশ্মীর নিয়ে ওদের স্থিতাবস্থাকে সম্মান করি। কাশ্মীর প্রসঙ্গ ভারতের অভ্যন্তরীণ ইস্যু, এটা ওরা বরাবর মেনে চলেছে।" যদিও সংশোধিত নাগরিকত্ব বিল নিয়ে ভারতের বিরুদ্ধে কিছুটা ক্ষোভ উগরে দিয়েছে ঢাকা। পাশাপাশি চলতি মাসের প্রথম সপ্তাহে ঢাকায় নিযুক্ত পাক রাষ্ট্রদূতকে উষ্ণ অভ্যর্থনা জানিয়েছে শেখ হাসিনা সরকার। আর এতেই উদ্বেগ বেড়েছে ভারতের।

Indian envoy failed to meet Hasina despite requests: Dhaka daily It also reported that all Indian projects have slowed down since the re-election of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2019. A prominent newspaper of Bangladesh has said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina did not meet India’s High Commissioner despite repeated requests for a meeting in the last four months. Bhorer Kagoj, a prominent daily, has reported that all Indian projects have slowed down since the re-election of Prime Minister Hasina in 2019 with Chinese infrastructure projects receiving more support from Dhaka. “Despite India's concern, Bangladesh has given the contract of building an airport terminal in Sylhet to a Chinese company. Indian High Commissioner Riva Ganguly Das tried for four months to get an appointment with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh but did not get it. Bangladesh has not even sent a note of appreciation to India in response to Indian assistance for the COVID-19 pandemic”, said the newspaper's editor Shyamal Dutta in an article on the recent tilt of Dhaka towards Pakistan and China. Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG) has received the contract for building a new terminal in MAG Osmania Airport of Sylhet that borders India's northeastern region and is, therefore, considered a sensitive area for New Delhi. A diplomatic source from the Bangladesh High Commission here has confirmed that the Indian envoy had sought an appointment with Ms Hasina but it did not materialise. However, neither India’s High Commission in Dhaka nor the Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) responded to questions from The Hindu. A diplomat from the Indian mission said Ms Ganguly Das has gone out of Dhaka on a tour. Imran Khan’s call Ms. Hasina received a phone call from Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan on Wednesday. Though Dhaka refused to give more details of the conversation, Pakistan’s official news agency reported that Mr. Khan informed Ms Hasina about the situation in Kashmir and sought “resolution” of the dispute. India, in response on Thursday, appreciated Bangladesh saying that Dhaka considers Kashmir an internal matter of India. Ms Ganguly Das has been appointed as the next Secretary in charge of the eastern hemisphere in the MEA and she is expected to take her new post in the coming days. She was met by foreign minister Dr. A K Abdul Momen on July 14 for a farewell meeting. The article in Bhorer Kagoj said that a section of Ms Hasina’s office is actively supporting stronger ties with China. This angle was visible in the rapid improvement in ties with China’s ally Pakistan in the last 10 months. Bangladesh opted for Pakistan’s onion supplies in November 2019 after India imposed a ban on its export. This was the first time that Bangladesh imported agriculture items from Pakistan in the last 15 years. Dhaka-Islamabad ties went cold after Ms Hasina’s government hanged Jamaat E Islami Bangladesh leader Motiur Rahman Nizami for the 1971 war crimes in 2016. Pakistan had angrily protested against the execution and for two years (2018-'19) Dhaka did not host a Pakistan High Commissioner. NRC, CAA issues India’s ties with Bangladesh in the meantime was also hit by the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which aims to give amnesty to minority religious groups from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. Dhaka has maintained that instances of religious bigotry has gone down in the country and that the NRC and the CAA are internal matters of India. The issue, however, has created a wave of concern in Dhaka, as prominent leaders of the ruling BJP spoke about “sending back” undocumented citizens to Bangladesh. In recent weeks, media in Dhaka has also been vocal about increased number of casualties along the India-Bangladesh border because of reported firings by the Border Security Force (BSF). Growing differences with India were viewed as opportunity for groups that are aligned with Pakistan and Chinese interests in Dhaka. In this backdrop, Bangladesh-Pakistan diplomatic ties resumed earlier this year with the arrival of new Pakistan High Commissioner Imran Ahmed Siddiqui in January. Mr Siddiqui secured a special meeting with Dr. Momen on July 1. The article in Bhorer Kagoj also said that a section of officials in Bangladesh was trying to use cricket to normalise relations between the two sides that continues to be vitiated by the memory of widespread human rights violation and war crimes committed by the Pakistan military against the people of the erstwhile East Pakistan that led to the revolt and ultimately the creation of Bangladesh in December '71 through the Indo-Pak war. Ms Hasina’s increasing diplomatic interactions with Pakistan and Pakistan’s traditional supporter China is also being viewed as a move to bargain with India on issues of Dhaka’s special interest, especially the CAA, which remains a sticking issue for Bangladesh as it is weary of hosting more refugees in addition to the 1.2 million Rohingya from Myanmar currently residing in Chittagong’s Kutupalong.

Bangladesh Railway to receive 10 locomotives from India Bangladesh Railway (BR) will receive 10 locomotives from India on Monday, to overcome its locomotive crisis. India would hand over the locomotives as grants. "The broad gauge locomotives, which India is giving as gift, would be handed over at 3:00pm on July 27 through Darshana-Gede Interchange Point," Railways Ministry's Senior Information Officer Shariful Alam said today. Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and Indian Railways Minister Piyush Goyal will attend the ceremony virtually, he added. All the ten broad gauge locomotives Indian Railway is going to hand over to BR were commissioned in between September 2012 and December 2015, said officials. With 72 percent locomotives of BR already crossing their economic life, the government took initiatives last year to hire locomotives from India for the first time to help them overcome the crisis. In April last year, BR sent a proposal to the railways ministry to "hire" or "get as courtesy" 20 railway engines (10 broad gauge and 10 meter gauge) from India until the first batch of 70 locomotives that Bangladesh bought from the US and South Korea start arriving mid-next year. "Until then, the 10 locomotives would be very helpful," BR's Director General Md Shamsuzzaman told The Daily Star on July 13. However, BR will not bring meter gauge (MG) locomotives from India. They did not get suitable MG locomotives as India phased out such engines long ago, Shamsuzzaman added. According to BR documents from May last year, it had 178 MG locomotives, of which 139 have crossed their 20-year economic life. Of its 90 BG locomotives, 55 have completed their economic life.

BSF must use non-lethal weapons at border, Bangladesh tells India Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen yesterday said Indian Border Security Force should be cautious and use non-lethal weapons while guarding the border with Bangladesh, according to a report of The Hindu. The minister told media in Dhaka that Bangladesh has identified the areas where people have died in firing from the border guards and Dhaka is planning to station more forces at those hot spots to prevent casualties, said the report published today. "The BSF needs to be more careful while enforcing law in the border areas. They can arrest and bring our citizens to us if they are found violating law but killing our nationals is not welcome," Momen said, urging Indian authorities to act according to bilateral understanding. The comment came in response to the reported lynching of three citizens of Bangladesh in Indian state Assam's Karimganj on Sunday. Police in Karimganj have alleged that the three had come to steal cattle. "There is no need for us to bring cattle from elsewhere. We have enough cattle of our own," the report quoted Momen as saying. The BSF has taken a tough stance on containing cattle smuggling which spikes annually ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, he said. Though the incident in Karimganj is being investigated, officials in Dhaka urged the border guards of India and the common people to treat Bangladesh nationals according to agreed principles, the report said. "We have identified the border areas where our people have been killed in the recent past. We have conducted an internal discussion about how to prevent such incidents. This is a very small part of the border and we are considering deploying more forces in such areas to avoid the frequent tragedies," Momen said.

India backs away from Bheramara economic zone project The Indian authorities have cancelled their plan to establish an economic zone at Bheramara in Kushtia. They have already informed the Bangladesh government of their decision. The Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (Beza) and Economic Relations Division officials said, based on the feasibility study report, the Indian authorities think the economic zone in Bherama will not be convenient for investment. That is why they discarded the plan, officials said. According to the minutes of the meeting held at the Prime Minister's Office in February this year, India is not interested in establishing the economic zone in Bheramara. Instead, it is interested in establishing a tourism park near the Naf River and constructing a cable car over the river. Indian officials said, at the joint working group meeting held on August 21 last year, that they no longer wished to consider the Bheramara site, and requested that an alternative site be considered. The project of establishing two economic zones in Mongla and Bheramara was taken under the Indian Second Line of Credit (LoC). India was supposed to lend $88 million to implement the project. As the Bheramara project has been cancelled, Indian officials said the remaining funds of around $50 million will be used for a new project. The project has not yet received final approval by the Indian authorities. That is why it has not yet been raised at the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) meeting. Officials said the Bheramara project was cancelled but India wants to establish the economic zone in Mongla. Beza said the Mongla project proposal was sent to the Indian government and is currently being reviewed. A memorandum of understanding was signed in February last year between Beza and the Nidar Group to set up the zone. Also, 110 acres of land was allocated for the Mongla project, but an additional $30-40 million will be needed to develop the zone as per India's requirements. On the other hand, another project titled Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpanagar in Chattogram's Mirsharai under the Second LoC is underway. It was approved by Ecnec in mid-2019, and is estimated to be finished by June next year. India is providing Tk914.59 crore of the Tk919.85 crore project. Beza officials said Indian investors would be able to invest there by next year.

Duty-free benefit may bring in Chinese investments Rising wages and living costs in China and an ongoing trade war with the United States have opened up a window of opportunity for Bangladesh Granting duty-free access to 5,161 additional Bangladeshi products to the Chinese market from July 1 is encouraging news for the country at this time of the coronavirus pandemic, according to analysts and business bodies in the country. Now, 8,256 Bangladeshi products will be exempted from tariffs in the world's second largest economy, but Bangladesh is not yet sure whether its apparels would be allowed duty-free access to a market of 140 crore consumers. If its garments are not given easy access, experts say Bangladesh's benefits will be minimal. Yet, Bangladesh has a chance to gain significantly from the move. How? Rising wages and living costs in China and an ongoing trade war with the United States have opened up a window of opportunity for Bangladesh. Products made in China have become expensive, and many factory owners are now looking for an alternative place where they can operate cost effectively and export to global markets with duty-free benefit. The political will that directs Chinese investments overseas also looks favourable for Bangladesh. Analysts say Bangladesh can benefit from this policy if it can respond appropriately to the Chinese offer. "We will not benefit significantly from exports unless we deviate from our overdependence on apparels. But Bangladesh can gain significantly from Chinese investments," said Khandaker Golam Moazzem, research director at Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD). Under a new normal policy, China will shift its low-end products to countries that are cheaper for them and then they will re-export those products to China and other parts of the world with the duty-free benefit that Bangladesh enjoys, he said. "But Bangladesh has to expedite work on the economic zone for Chinese companies. Also, Mirsarai can be developed fast to house Chinese factories," said Moazzem. Paban Chowdhury, executive chairman of the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (Beza), said many Chinese companies are in talks with them for the last two years. "A big Chinese chemical company has been allocated 100 acres of land at Mirsarai. Some others are in the pipeline," Chowdhury said. On the development of the Chinese Economic and Industrial Zone at Anwara in Chattogram, he said the progress is not significant. "It is tough to speed up work in Bangladesh because of the various legal and bureaucratic tangles that are part of such projects," he noted. In mid-June in 2017, the Beza and China Harbour Engineering Company signed an agreement for the development of the Chinese economic and industrial zone in Bangladesh on 781 acres of land at Anwara. However, there are criticisms of Beza's handling of the economic zone developments across the country. Shahed Alam, vice-president of Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce and Industry, criticised Beza for taking a move to develop 100 economic zones at a time. "We have been hearing this for the last several years, but there is little progress," said Alam. "Finish five zones, then take another five for development, and this is how you can boost the confidence of investors," he said. Why factories from China may shift China's competitive advantage of low-labour cost has evaporated over the years as the standard of living rose for its population. Rising costs, cancellation of tax preferences for foreign companies, the ongoing trade war with the USA and the Covid-19 impact on the global supply chain have forced western companies to think about moving out of China and relocate to countries that have advantages on costs and market access. The minimum wage in all major Chinese provinces, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Tianjin, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, have crossed $300 mark last year – three times higher than Bangladesh's present $100. The minimum wage in Vietnam is nearly $200 per month. This is forcing some foreign manufacturers to either close their China plants or relocate to countries with lower costs. Sony Mobile has shut down its mobile phone factory in Beijing in March, while Samsung is reported to be ready to close its Huizhou plant. According to reports in International media, China has recently taken a policy to shift low-cost production units away from China. The Asian giant has decided to upgrade its industries and move up the value-added chain. With an increasing number of educated youths and fewer rural migrant workers, it has become harder for low value-added production units to operate there. Here lies Bangladesh's opportunity along with Vietnam, India, Indonesia and Myanmar. Stringent rules of origin is a big barrier The latest duty-free market access to China has come up with the condition of 40% value addition (rules of origin), meaning that Bangladesh has to add 40% value to a product's price if it wants to get duty-free benefit. "It is very stringent. Bangladesh has a few items whose 40% value addition can be done locally," said Moazzem of CPD. Currently, Bangladesh exports to China under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) with 35% local value addition requirement. Leaders of Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCCCI) also believe that fulfilling the condition of 40% domestic value addition is very tough. "We are not sure about it. We will come to know about it on July 1," said Al Mamun Mridha, joint secretary general of the BCCCI. Bangladesh-China trade Trade between the two Asian economies has been rising rapidly for the past decade but the balance is heavily in China's favour. Bangladesh exported goods worth $319 million to China in the fiscal year 2010-11, while China's exports to Bangladesh were $5.9 billion. After nine years, in the fiscal year 2018-19, Bangladesh's exports increased to $831 million and China's export number stood at over $13.65 billion. But the good thing is Bangladesh's exports to China have risen by 160% while the figure for China's is 131% between the period of 2010-11 and 2018-19 fiscal years. It seemed duty-free benefits on some items under the APTA since January 2015 has helped Bangladesh boost its exports to China. Bangladesh's exports became almost double to over $800 million in the fiscal year 2015-16 from $458 million a year ago. In the following year, Bangladesh's exports crossed a $900 million mark for the first time, but since then it has been declining and reached less than $700 million in the fiscal year 2017-18. In the first eight months till February in the current fiscal year, Bangladesh exported $470 million worth of goods to China. Bangladesh's main exports to China include leather and leather goods, shrimp, T-shirts, jeans, jute and jute goods and charcoal etc. Bangladesh imports basic raw materials, intermediate goods, chemicals and machinery from China for its apparel industry.

All spans of Padma bridge are currently in Bangladesh as last shipment of spans arrived at Mongla port on 19th June. PC- Samir

New export potential unlocked in Chinese market Starting from July 1, some 8,256 Bangladeshi products will get zero tariff facility in the Chinese market The world economy is battered by the coronavirus pandemic and the global trade is almost in a standstill for the last five months. Factories are being closed down in the country due to cancellation in buying orders in the garment sector. Amid such a grim economic situation, Bangladesh's large trading partner China has offered a breath of relief. The country has offered zero tariff facility to 97% of items imported from Bangladesh. The new announcement will come into effect on July 1 this year. From that day, 8,256 Bangladeshi products will get zero tariff facility in the Chinese market. Bangladeshi manufacturers will be able to avail this duty-free and quota-free facility after 40% value addition to these products. After the decision was approved by the Chinese government on June 16 (Tuesday), the country notified the Bangladesh government about it on Friday through the Bangladesh High Commission in China. Stakeholders concerned believe this opportunity is expected to give a boost to Bangladesh's exports to the Chinese market and attract foreign investment into Bangladesh. There is a strong prospect of expanding markets of Bangladeshi pharmaceutical products, readymade garments, frozen food, fish and vegetables in China. The Bangladesh government hopes the new facility will help to reduce the expanding trade gap between Bangladesh and China. Mamun Rashid, joint-secretary to Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told The Business Standard there is a huge demand for Bangladeshi traditional products as well as pharmaceutical items in China that has a population of around 140 crore. "Bangladesh could not use that potential for not having duty-free access to the Chinese market," he said, adding, "it has opened up a new opportunity for Bangladesh." According to sources at the Ministry of Commerce, Bangladesh has been enjoying zero tariff facility on 60 percent of export items to China since July 1, 2010 under Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) for LDCs. However, Bangladesh was not able to benefit much from the opportunity as the facility was on less important export items other than the principal exportable items of Bangladesh . The latest facility would ensure unimpeded access of Bangladeshi products to the Chinese market. Hafizur Rahman, joint-secretary to the commerce ministry and chief of the WTO Cell, told The Business Standard, "There are many products in Bangladesh which are good in quality but much cheaper when compared to those of China. Those products can find a place in the Chinese market." Pointing out that China is ready to shift a large number of mills and factories to other countries owing to tough compliance requirements and high costs of production, he said Bangladesh could become a potential investment destination for China. The broader access of Bangladeshi products to the Chinese market will help reduce the expanding trade gap between the two countries and also will help to create employment in the country by attracting more foreign investment, he hoped. China has been enjoying an upper hand in bilateral trade. In the last fiscal year, China exported $12 billion worth of goods to Bangladesh, while Bangladesh's exports to the country stood at a paltry $831 million. Businesses claim that even though labour in Bangladesh is cheaper than in China and that Bangladeshi products have huge demand in Chinese market, Bangladesh is not being able to increase exports to China due to tariffs. Bangladesh Tanners' Association President Shahin Ahmed said Bangladesh could previously export over 3,000 products to China without facing tariff barriers by adding 35 percent value to those. However, since the more prominent export items were out of the list of products under the facility, Bangladesh could not get the facility on most of the potential export items. At present China buys 50 percent of Bangladesh's tannery products, he said, adding that the sector will benefit from the newly announced facility. Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries Secretary Shafiuzzaman said, "Although Bangladesh's pharmaceutical industry relies on raw materials from China, we can supply cheaper drugs to China." Pharmaceutical companies in Bangladesh can still make profit by exporting drugs of similar standard at 20-25% cheaper rates than those offered by Chinese manufacturers, he said, adding that the new tariff-free facility will help to expand the market for Bangladeshi drugs in China. Commenting on this, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Owners Association President Rubana Huq told The Business Standard, "China used to provide us duty free access for 60% items of all the tariff lines under its LDC scheme through WTO notification, and I think this has been extended to 98% since the formalities were going on for quite some time." "For most of the items we used to enjoy duty-free and quota-free access to China under the prevailing facility, if there were few items left it will now be included," she added. There are certain issues regarding duty free access to China, she continued, "There are two schemes through which we can get duty free, one is LDC scheme through WTO, and the other is APTA. "Though apparently the duty-free and quota-free facility is more beneficial for us at this moment than APTA with respect to product coverage and tariff cut, but when we will lose LDC status we will have to go for APTA." However, Joint Secretary Hafizur Rahman of the commerce ministry said the new facility will not be affected by Bangladesh's graduation from the LDC status. "The APTA facility has just been put on hold because of this new facility. We will get it back after graduation from the LDC status." China or Bangladesh: Who to benefit from the move? The commerce ministry said all potential Bangladeshi export products will get duty-free and quota-free access to China from July 1 this year, but Bangladesh will not have to offer any facility to China for this. Commerce Secretary Jafar Uddin said China has offered this facility unilaterally to the LDCs at the behest of the World Trade Organisation so Bangladesh will get this facility unconditionally. Forty-one LDCs including Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and the Philippines have been enjoying zero tariff treatment on their export items to China. However, Khondaker Golam Moazzem, senior research director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, said although China has granted this facility to Bangladesh unconditionally, it will be benefited from this indirectly. He said, "Due to its industrial policy, China is gradually moving away from lighter industries. The country is producing expensive products instead of cheaper ones. "China will get an opportunity to shift these factories to other countries and then import those products under the zero tariff facility." Besides, investing in Bangladesh is profitable for Chinese investors as labour has become costlier in China.

Cox's Bazar runway expansion: Controversial contractor gets CAAB green signal Building such a marvellous runway is not only expensive but only a few companies in the world have such expertise to construct runways extending from shore to sea With inspiration from Hong Kong International Airport, the Bangladesh government has taken an ambitious project to expand the runway at Cox's Bazar airport by reclaiming land from the sea in a bid to woo tourists to the beach town. The project, which was approved by the government on November 4, 2018, has been estimated to cost Tk1,998 crore to construct the 1,700 feet-long runway extension, of which 1,300 feet will be on the sea. However, building such a marvellous runway is not only expensive but only a few companies in the world have such expertise to construct runways extending from shore to sea. The project had been marred with controversies since the beginning following allegations of corruption against the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), the government body overseeing the massive project. The project fell into a controversy when CAAB hurriedly selected China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), an international contractor previously blacklisted on corruption charges by the Bangladesh government, in the tender process. CAAB announced the tender on November, 2019, and fixed March 19, 2020, as the last date of submission. A total of 10 bidders, mostly from China, Korea, and Turkey, submitted their proposals. On May 17, 2020, CAAB selected Chinese company CHEC after scrutinizing their technical and financial proposals for the tender. Already, Hyundai Development Company (HDC) and National Development Engineers (NDE) Joint Venture (HDC­NDE JV), one of the 10 bidders for the project, has already emailed an official complaint to CAAB to ensure transparency and stop arbitrary selection and evaluation of contractors for the tender. Kiwoong Kim, the authorized representative of South Korea-based renowned developer HDC, filed the complaint to the CAAB under Section 30 of the Public Procurement Act, 2006, for arbitrary selection and evaluation of contractors. According to the complaint letter, the entire process has fallen into a dispute as only China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) was selected for financial bid opening in a hurried manner against 10 other reputed bidders. It also accused CAAB of hastily making their decision of selecting CHEC amid the ongoing public holidays declared by the government since March 23, 2020. HDCNDE JV also claimed in the letter that mala fide in the selection process was proved as CAAB selected a blacklisted company, with a proven reputation for resorting to bribery and corruption for obtaining projects in Bangladesh, in a hurried manner during the ongoing public holiday. “We would like to bring to your attention that in June 2018, China Harbour Engineering Company was blacklisted by the Government of Bangladesh for attempting to bribe a Secretary with the Roads and Highways Department,” the letter said. HDCNDE JV has requested CAAB to immediately stop the entire selection process and cancel awarding the tender of the project and re-evaluate the technical capabilities of the bidders in the appropriate manner prior to considering the technical bid of any party. However, the authorities have been ignoring all allegations being brought forward by other bidder companies. “We were astonished to see that none of the companies were able to submit their documents accurately. We have marked all the faults in the documents submitted to the tender committee by such global reputed companies if they want to challenge us,” said Md Muhibul Haque, senior secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, when contacted by Dhaka Tribune on Saturday. “That is why we were bound to select only the Chinese companies for further procedures. However, analyzing the financial documents of the selected Chinese company, we found that our costs can be Tk136 crore less than estimated. That will be a huge saving of public money,” he added. Meanwhile, CAAB Chairman Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune: “We are requesting companies to check their faults while submitting documents first to understand the mistakes, or else they will lose their reputation if we go public. “The total tendering process was done with 100% transparency,” he claimed. However, a local consultant of the HDCNDE JV said: “We are over sure that there were no loopholes in our documents. We can and will challenge it. If necessary, we will submit a petition in court.” Is CHEC a blacklisted company? On January 2018, the government blacklisted China Harbour Engineering Company Limited for trying to bribe a secretary of the Roads and Highway Division. “The firm (CHEC) offered Tk5 million in bribes to the Road Transport and Highways Division secretary. The secretary informed us about the matter. That is why we have blacklisted them. It won’t be able to work here anymore,” the then finance minister AMA Muhith made the announcement before reporters at the Secretariat on January 16, 2018. However, CAAB chairman Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman said: “According to the Public Procurement Act, blacklisted companies are not eligible to participate in any tender process. “So, is there any scope to select the company if it was blacklisted by the government? As HDC did not qualify, that is why they are now raising the issue,” he added. However, CAAB tender committee’s inclination for Chinese companies is nothing new. Power Construction Corporation of China, one of the 10 foreign bidders, submitted technical proposals and financial proposals in the same envelope, despite rules to be submitted in separate envelopes. According to Section 24.1 of the Public Procurement Act, the tender committee should reject the document. But, unfortunately, the tender committee accepted it on March 19. That was the beginning of the allegation against the tender committee of the runway. Following reports of massive irregularities and corruption on the runway expansion project, the government formed a probe committee which found evidence of irregularities of more than Tk100 crore. The committee also recommended filing a departmental case against the concerned executive engineer and project director along with suspension from their capacities. First sea extended runway in Bangladesh to attract tourists Despite being the largest sea beach in the world, Cox’s Bazar had failed to attract the number of tourists it deserves. Thus, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism took a sea-extended runway at Cox’s Bazar Airport to woo tourists from all over the globe. As per initial design, the runway was supposed to be extended 3000 feet (around 1km) from shore to the sea with a cost of Tk3,709crore, but it was revised later for various complexities. In the final design, the runway will be 1,700 feet of which 1300 feet will be on seawater, similar to Hong Kong International Airport, one of the most attractive airports to tourists.

And that's why we should find alternate option for Payra in south instead of building another in Sonadia.

সাতক্ষীরা সীমান্তে বিজিবির টাওয়ার নির্মাণে বাধা সাতক্ষীরার তলুইগাছা সীমান্তে বিজিবি পর্যবেক্ষণ টাওয়ার নির্মাণে বাধা দিয়েছে ভারতীয় বিএসএফ। শুক্রবার সকালে শ্রমিকরা যখন কাজ করছিলেন সে সময় বিএসএফ-এর আমুদিয়া ক্যাম্প সদস্যরা আপত্তি করে। পরে বিজিবির তলুইগাছা ক্যাম্প কমান্ডার নায়েক সুবেদার আবদুস সবুরের সঙ্গে দ্বিপক্ষীয় অনানুষ্ঠানিক আলোচনা হয়। তিনি জানান, ১০০ ফুট উচ্চতার টাওয়ারটির নির্মাণ কাজ ৭৫ ফুট পর্যন্ত সম্পন্ন হয়েছে। অবশিষ্ট কাজ চলার সময় বিএসএফ বাধা দেয়। কিছুক্ষণের জন্য কাজ বন্ধ থাকলেও ফের তা শুরু হয়। এ বিষয়ে জানতে চাইলে বিজিবির ৩৩ ব্যাটালিয়ন অধিনায়ক লে. কর্নেল গোলাম মহিউদ্দিন খন্দকার জানান, পর্যবেক্ষণ টাওয়ারটি বাংলাদেশের নিজস্ব ভূখণ্ডে। এতে বাধা দেয়ার আইনগত সুযোগ কারও নেই। টাওয়ার নির্মাণ কাজ অব্যাহত আছে।

China exit: Japanese firms keen on moving to BD At least 34 Japanese companies operating in China have shown interest to relocate their units to Bangladesh. The embassy of Bangladesh in Beijing informed the development to the ministry of foreign affairs on Wednesday. Dozens of Japanese firms have planned to leave China on the grounds of trade war between the USA and China and the supply chain disruptions. Quoting JETRO officials in Beijing, the embassy said the 34 out of 690 Japanese firms registered in China have so far revealed the relocation plan following announcement of stimulus package by the Japanese government for the shift out of the mainland. It also said the JETRO officials recognised Bangladesh’s attractiveness as an investor-friendly destination. They, however, declined to name the Japanese firms willing to relocate from China. Earlier, the ambassador accompanied by high officials of the embassy called on the Japanese ambassador in Beijing Yutaka Yokoi to urge the Japanese side to prefer Bangladesh as a destination for relocation by their firms. Meanwhile, the Office of United States Trade Representative or USTR on May 13 last year released the list of 3,805 product categories that could be subject to tariffs of up to 25 per cent. Impacted by the US tariffs on Chinese-made goods, Japanese companies have started to leave China as the trade war launched by the Trump administration gets intensified. The Japanese firms that decide to relocate are mostly affected by the complete disruption to supply chain as well as the trade war that has hit hard the Japanese entities producing high-value products in China. Auto parts makers of Mazda Motor has decided to go to Mexico from the Jiangsu Province of China. Kasai Kogyo, supplier of Honda (interior door trim and roof part), is now planning to move from Wuhan to North America, Europe and Asia. Masudur Rahman, an official at the Bangladesh embassy in Beijing wrote the letter to an additional secretary of the ministry of foreign affairs. In the meantime, Sheikh F Fahim, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry or FBCCI, wrote a letter to the country representative of the Japan External Trade Organisation on May 12 calling for facilitating the relocation. Japan has adopted a national strategy to be implemented during the post Covid-19 period to relocate its investment both at home and outside China. The FBCCI also wrote to the Confederation of Asia Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry to encourage its member nations to relocate firms to Bangladesh.

Doesn't the design look different from original product?

বাংলাদেশ নৌ বাহিনীর জন্য খুশিলিতে নির্মাণাধীন ০২ টি জরিপ বোট এর লঞ্চিং অনুষ্ঠান (১৪ মে ২০২০)

Bangladesh, India add 5 more ports of call Bangladesh and India have added five more ports of call that would augment the trade and provide a stimulus to the economic development of the new locations and their hinterland. The five new ports of call in Bangladesh side are Rajshahi, Sultanganj, Chilmari, Daudkandi and Bahadurabad, while in Indian side are Dhulian, Maia, Kolaghat, Sonamura and Jogigopha. Bangladesh's Shipping Secretary Mezbah Uddin Chowdhury and Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Riva Ganguly Das signed the Second Addendum to the Protocol on Transit and Trade at the shipping ministry today. Under the protocol, presently there are six ports of call. They are Kolkata, Haldia, Karimganj, Pandu, Shilghat and Dhubri on Indian side and Narayanganj, Khulna, Mongla, Sirajganj, Ashuganj and Pangaon on Bangladesh side. Further, two more extended ports of call – Tribeli ( Bandel) and Badarpur on Indian side and Ghorasal and Muktarpur on Bangladesh side – have been added through this addendum. Now, total ports of call are 11 and there are two extended ports of call in both countries. "Inclusion of Jogigopha in India and Bahadurabad in Bangladesh as a new Port of Call will provide connectivity to Meghalaya, Assam and Bhutan. Jogigopha also becomes important, since, a multimodal logistics park is proposed to be established there," said Indian High Commission in a statement. The Protocol on Transit and Trade through inland waterways of India and Bangladesh, which was first signed in the year 1972, was last renewed in 2015 for five years with a provision of its automatic renewal for a further period of five years. During the discussions between India and Bangladesh at shipping ministry level meetings held in October, 2018 in New Delhi and in December, 2019 in Dhaka, key decisions were taken on the extension of protocol routes, inclusion of new routes, and declaration of new ports of call to facilitate trade between the two countries. These decisions have been made effective with the signing of Second Addendum to the Protocol. The number of Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) routes is being increased from 8 to 10 and new locations are also added to the existing routes. The operationalisation of Rajshahi-Dhulian-Rajshahi route and its extension up to Aricha (270 km) will help the augmentation of infrastructure in Bangladesh as it would reduce the transportation cost of stone chips/aggregate to northern part of Bangladesh through this route. Further, it will also decongest land custom stations on both sides, said the statement. Indian High Commission said as a path-breaking development, both sides have agreed to introduce trade between Chilmari (Bangladesh) and Dhubri (India) through the use of shallow draft mechanised vessels. This initiative will allow export of stone chips and other Bhutanese and Northeast cargo to Bangladesh and easy access for the traders to the hinterland of Bangladesh, enhancing the local economy in Bangladesh and the lower Assam region of India. Under this Protocol, inland vessels of both the countries can ply the designated protocol route and dock at ports of call in each country, notified for loading / unloading of cargo. "There has been significant improvement in the movement of cargo vessels in an organised manner on the protocol route carrying both the transit cargo to Northeast region of India and vice-versa and export-cargo to Bangladesh," it said. The Indian transit cargo is mainly coal, fly-ash, POL and ODC for power projects in Northeast region. The other potential cargo for movement is fertilisers, cement, food grains, agricultural products, containerised cargo etc. On the other hand, the export cargo from India to Bangladesh is mainly fly-ash, which is to the tune of 30 lakhs MT annually. Around 638 inland vessels (including 600 Bangladeshi flag vessels) completed with approximately 4000 loaded voyages annually. "It is expected that these additions to the protocol will greatly facilitate the bilateral trade, with improved reliability and cost effectiveness for the business community and the people of both the countries," Indian High Commission said. Excellent connectivity provided by the existing and the newly added protocol routes is all the more pertinent in the present Covid-19 scenario as it will be instrumental in providing economical, faster, safer and greener mode of transport, it said.

Idle power plants paid Tk 90b: study Only 43pc output used Emran Hossain | Published: 00:05, May 19,2020 A new study released on Monday by the US-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis said that Bangladesh paid idle power plants Tk 90 billion in 2018–19 for it could use only 43 per cent of the generation capacity. The economic downturn due to the COVID-19 crisis will cause a fall in the power demand pushing the already subsidised state-owned Power Development Board winto even deeper financial crisis, said the study. ‘Based on our own forecast of power demand growth, which takes the economic impact of COVID-19 into account, we calculate that Bangladesh is on course to have capacity that can generate 58% more power than the nation needs by 2030,’ said a press release quoting Simon Nicholas of IEEFA, the lead author of the study report. The report published online misforecasts from Bangladesh’s power sector master plan that aimed at developing power capacity-based expensive fuels such as imported coal and LNG responsible for throwing the country into such a situation. The state minister for power, energy and mineral resources Nasrul Hamid said that Bangladesh’s generation capacity was greater than required due to technical reasons. ‘The power demand changes cosiderably because of high seasonal variation in the country,’ said Nasrul. He said that it is normal to have the capacity to generate 22,000 MW when the demand is about 12,000 MW. He also said that Bangladesh could not afford to switch to renewable energy because of establishment costs and lack of available land needed for running solar power plants. The report said that Indonesia followed a similar power sector development plan and saw a 75 per cent increase in subsidy that rose to $5 billion in 2018. The IEEFA predicted that the Indonesian government’s subsidy would likely rise to $7.2 billion next year. The study said that if Bangladesh continued pursuing the misleading power sector development plan with the establishment of all the planned coal-based power plants the resulting overcapacity would require the government and the consumers spend more on power. The study said that a part of the impending power sector disorder already got manifested in the 1,320 MW Payra Power Plant, which is set to count Tk 160 crore a month as capacity payment for half its capacity not used. The ideal reserve power margin is 10 to 20 per cent but the power sector master plan of Bangladesh has decided to keep it at 25 per cent, the study added. Still, the master plan said, the reserve power margin would reach as high as 69 per cent in 2020, noted the study. The study said that Bangladesh failed to achieve the power growth as forecasted in the power sector master plan and the coronavirus crisis only worsened the situation by slowing down the economic growth. The state-owned power company of Indonesia, PLN, already predicted a 15 per cent fall in its annual revenue income because of the coronavirus crisis while Bangladesh is also faced with revenue crisis, said the study. The IEEFA study said that in 2015–16 the power sector subsidy stood at $28 billion in Bangladesh and it kept rising ever since. The PDB estimated that it would lose Tk 90 billion in 2020–21. Bangladesh increased power tariff eight times in last decade. The IEEFA said that the coronavirus crisis slowing down the construction of coal-based power plants offered Bangladesh an opportunity to look back at its power policy and re-evaluate it. It said that overcapacity became a problem in countries such as Pakistan, India, Indonesia and Egypt where the governments were showing growing interest in clean energy. ‘The COVID-19 induced delay to coal power projects gives Bangladesh an opportunity to reset energy development policy and redirect resources to support economic fundamentals and energy price stability to enable the realization of ‘Vision 2041’, said the study.

Bangladesh’s power sector set to face financial crisis The complications will arise due to overcapacity of coal- and LNG-based production, says a study Bangladesh’s plan for significant coal- and LNG-fired power plant additions will lock the nation into substantial overcapacity, with major financial implications, says a study. The Sydney-based study, which predicted this, was released by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) on Monday. The ongoing Covid-19 crisis will also make the situation worse as it is lowering power demand significantly, said the study. Bangladesh already recorded excess power generation with only 43% capacity utilization in 2018-19 financial year. This pre-Covid-19 low usage rate had resulted in Tk900 crore capacity payments for power plants sitting idle, necessitating both government subsidies and electricity price hikes for consumers, the study found. It warned that the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact will also mean long term power demand will be lower than the forecast, making overcapacity by 2030 worse if the current plan for coal- and LNG-based power capacity additions is continued. “Based on our own forecast of power demand growth, which takes the economic impact of Covid-19 into account, we calculate that Bangladesh is on course to have capacity that can generate 58% more power than the nation needs by 2030,” said Simon Nicholas of IEEFA, the lead author of the study. “A long-term switch from cheap domestic gas towards more expensive imported coal and LNG, combined with the severe, long term overcapacity Bangladesh is on course for is likely to see subsidies continue to rise,” he said. The study also found that the power tariffs for consumers can also be expected to go up. It drew stunning similarities to the rapidly escalating financial crisis of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), resulting from existing overcapacity whilst pushing forward with completion of the coal-fire Payra thermal power plant. Half the capacity of Payra plant will sit idle forcing the BPDB to make additional payments of Tk160 crore (or $19 million) per month, said the study. The research suggested that it was high time for Bangladesh to consider more appropriate, modular renewable energy (without capacity payments) and grid investments to meet lower demand growth, and reduce the overall system cost, while improving domestic energy security and resilience. It also found that the country had suitable amount of land for renewables. The Covid-19 induced delay to coal-fired power projects is giving Bangladesh an opportunity to reset its energy development policy to enable the realization of “Vision 2041.”

India to sail containerised EXIM cargo to Bangladesh from IBP for first time Loading will start after getting clearance from customs, it said India is set to sail maiden containerised EXIM Cargo from Haldia Dock Complex to Narayanganj, Bangladesh, via Indo-Bangla Protocol (IBP) route, the government said on Saturday. This is the first time that cargo consignment is to being exported through IBP route, News 18 reported. "In line with government's focus on strengthening regional connectivity through inland waterways, maiden containerised EXIM cargo consignment is set to sail from Haldia Dock Complex (HDC) to Narayanganj, Bangladesh," Ministry of Shipping said in a statement. It said 64 TEUs (Twenty Feet Equivalent Units) of steel fillings/pig iron ingots, of West Bengal-based steel manufacturer Rashmi Metaliks Ltd will be exported to Bangladesh via National Waterway 1, National Waterway 97 (Sundarbans) and IBP Route. Loading will start after getting clearance from customs, it said. It is expected to open up possibilities for movement of other commodities on inland waterways between India and Bangladesh. Currently, IBP route is mostly used for transportation of Bulk cargo like fly-ash, coal, stone chips and over-dimensional cargo for export to Bangladesh. Shipping Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said, "The Maiden Exim cargo movement through National Waterways is a landmark moment and we are very delighted with our recent development in shipping sector. This environment-friendly mode of transportation would escalate business growth and contribute to the economic development of the country." India's exports to Bangladesh in FY 2018-19 stood at USD 9.21 billion and imports from Bangladesh during the same period were USD 1.04 billion. The government said given the trade volume, this movement is a welcome development as it will not only reduce the congestions on Land Custom Stations at Petrapole, Gojadanga etc but also reduce the cost of logistics, air pollution and GHG emissions.

DataSoft Systems sees a bright future ahead for software firms, despite coronavirus pandemic Bangladesh got a little break from the doom and gloom of the coronavirus pandemic yesterday when Hitachi in Tokyo launched its made-in-Bangladesh IoT application-based airCloud Pro device, which manages large cooling and heating systems remotely. The internet of things (IoT) allows the physical devices of a household or a neighbourhood to be interconnected/inter-networked, and enables them in collecting and exchanging data, and commands the devices into action on instruction from the owner's smartphone. The IoT application should give the Japanese business giant a clear edge over its rivals in the variable refrigerant flow (VRF) air-conditioning system. And, quite understandably, DataSoft Systems Bangladesh Limited, the developer of the Hitachi IoT backbone application, has gone over the moon in Dhaka. The architecture of the application for the airCloud Pro is such that, with a smartphone in hand, the custodian of an air-conditioning system as large as the entire neighbourhood of Banani or as big as the shopping complex of Basundhara would be able to access, manage and troubleshoot the system from anywhere in the world. The entire operational ecosystem of Hitachi is built as an IoT platform so that millions of devices can be plugged in to be a part of the network, meaning that options are open for air-conditioning systems of multiple networks of apartments and neighbourhoods to get integrated and be managed through a Datasoft developed app. Maintenance and strategic planning would be carried out through artificial intelligence and machine learning applied to the collected data can further refine operational efficiency. "It is a proud moment for us here at DataSoft and Bangladesh," Manjur Mahmud, the chief operating officer (COO) of the company, communicated with The Daily Star through WhatsApp, terming it as a very important milestone for Bangladesh's information technology sector. Known for his penchant for short communications, the shaven-headed COO was in a joyous mood yesterday: "Every single item shown here (in the product launch) is built by our team at DataSoft. A complete team effort, and they all taste success today." A team of 27 software professionals worked for nine months to architect a solution for the topflight Japanese company in their core product offering. For Bangladesh, technology inflow from a highly advanced country like Japan is natural but technology outflow to Japan has so far been unprecedented. The solutions that qualify to enter the Japan market have to be cutting-edge technology and with state-of-the-art quality. "This did not happen accidentally. We have been consistently investing in next-generation technology for years," said the chief architect behind Datasoft's rise in the global market. Datasoft, the first software company in Bangladesh to be documented as a CMMI Level 5 software development company and among only 377 companies in the world with such qualifications, also made headlines in 2017 when it, as the first Bangladeshi company, sold IoT solutions for 10,000 smart apartments in Tokyo. When almost all businesses suffered terribly due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Datasoft seemed to have stayed out of trouble and found the future more prospective. "Fortunately, being a tech company, we are fully functional and in full capacity by letting our colleagues work from home," Manjur said. "Even in this crisis time, we are getting lots of enquiries: everyone wants to build digital customer engagement capabilities," he added. https://www.thedailystar.net/bytes/news/japanese-tech-giant-hitachi-launches-iot-product-using-bangladeshi-software-know-how-1903150