Feature

Looking through the Campuses

Md. Lutful Hoque Khan

In my school life, I had read in my English composition book, “The world is like a looking glass. When you look at the world through red glasses, it is red; when you look through yellow glasses, it's yellow..."

As I visit the campuses of various institutions throughout Bangladesh, I look through the campuses and their different colours.

As a student of Dhaka University, I have observed their culture very closely. Students come from all over the country and make what I would call 'A Fusion culture'. Some boys and girls from outside Dhaka are separated from the non-resident students most of the time due to cultural difference. You will find lots of students who are more studious and less sociable. Here I can sense the yellow colour of political hepatitis. I can also see the blue colour of pain and the black colour of complexity.

When I walk through BUET, I see some very brilliant students, who are not only disciplined about their studies, but also they maintain their adda and cultural activities.

They are very smart and have the power of eloquent speech; they are very much fond of the so-called 'D-Juice fashion'. They are cool enough to cope up with any unexpected situation-they are the students of private universities. I realized this while enjoying 'hot tea' with some students of BRAC University. Here I could feel the deep red of their life styles. In East-West University I saw some students from middle class families who find it very hard to get along with those from the upper class families.

I saw vibrant colours during my visit to IUT. Here, Muslim students from different countries like Pakistan, India, Algeria, Palestine, Sudan etc. come to study. The time of 'Hazz' is a time for re-union for the Muslims all over the world.

There are trees rustling in the wind; there are foreign birds in the lake during the winter, there is less pressure of coursework. But is that all? “If you come stay here for a few days, you will feel like you are in heaven, but if you have to stay here for years you will be bored,” says one of my friends from Jahangirnagar University.

Whatever their different colours, I feel joy and gather many memorable experiences while looking through all the different varsity campuses.

(The writer is a student of Department of Finance, DU)

Syeda Sabita Amin

Last month we witnessed Breast Cancer Awareness month. November is a special month dedicated to women as well as babies. It is known as the Prematurity Awareness month.

Premature babies are babies that are born before the normal nine months period. To a mother who gives birth to a premature baby, giving birth isn't the hardest thing. Today millions of babies around the world will be born prematurely. Many will be too small and too sick to go home. Instead, they face weeks or even months in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), with their scared parents looking on helplessly. These babies face an increased risk of death and serious medical complications; however, most, eventually, will go home.

But what does the future hold for these babies? Many survivors grow up healthy; others aren't so lucky. Even the best of care cannot always spare a premature baby from lasting disabilities such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation and learning problems, chronic lung disease, and vision and hearing problems. Half of all neurological disabilities in children are related to premature birth.

March of Dimes, an organization, campaigns throughout the United States spreading awareness to families and mothers to be. In New York City, the Empire State Building will shine with pink and blue lights from 14th to 16th November, supporting the campaign.

The cause for premature births are still unknown but most of the times it's the way a mother carries her child in the womb that brings about this tragedy. Her lifestyle has the biggest effect. We know people around us, either in our family or circle of relations who have suffered from this. If we don't take action now a person close to you may suffer from this but by then it will be too late.

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