Feature

UAP Merit Scholars Programme

ON 30 July, the University of Asia Pacific (UAP) arranged a reception to honour the Merit Scholars of Spring 09 semester. Although the university had been generously giving out scholarships and special waivers to the deserving students since its inception in 1996, this was the first time that a formal reception was arranged for the scholars.

AA Moniruzzaman, the Chairman of the UAP Foundation was the chief guest while the function was chaired by Prof. A Matin Patwari, Vice Chancellor of the UAP. Moniruzzaman announced a personal donation of Taka 5 lac in instituting a scholarship for poor, meritorious students. Former Secretary and Ambassador AKM Kamaluddin Choudhury, a member of the UAP Foundation, was also present. More than 500 students were awarded merit scholarships. This was in addition to another 370 students who were given entry level scholarships based on the results obtained in their SSC and HSC examination and another few hundreds who were given special financial waivers by the Vice Chancellor.

It had been the policy of the UAP to nurture, encourage and develop the latent talents in the students. The UAP tries to bring to the forefront those amongst the student community who through their talent and hard work do well in the academic life. Today, thousands of UAP students are well-placed in life, pursuring their professional career or higher studies at home and abroad. The UAP has at present more than 3000 students in its seven departments, namely : Architecture (arch), Business Administration (DBA), Civil Engineering (CE), Computer Science and Engineering (CSE), Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE), Law and Human Rights (L&HR), and Pharmacy (Pharm). In addition to undergraduate course, the university has Master programme in CE, DBA, CSE, L&HR and Pharmacy. The UAP is the first Private University in Bangladesh to have Pharmacy and Architecture faculty. It is also the pioneer among the private universities to start M Sc(CE) and the only university in the country to offer M Sc (CE) in Eathquake Engineering. The UAP is currnetly located in a number of buildings in Dhanmondi area, but a City Campus is soon to be built in its own 1-acre plot in Green Road, Dhaka.

Dowry still continues to haunt the society

Linda Nipa Mondol

THE existence of crime in a society is a challenge to its members due to its deleterious affect on the ordered social growth. It leads to a colossal waste of human energy and an enormous economic loss.

One of the most heinous crimes is dowry. Dowry is a social curse that still exists in our society. It can be in the form of any amount of money, property, ornaments or any other form of wealth that a man or his family receives from his wife or her family at the time of marriage. Although initially started by the Hindus, it had spread among all the religions and communities. The system of giving and taking dowry in marriage has struck deeper roots in Bangladesh. Illiteracy, poverty and greed of the bridegroom are the main causes of this ill practice.

In the Bangladeshi society this system often becomes a serious curse. Many parents are poor and they cannot arrange a marriage ceremony of their daughter due to the demands of dowry by the father or relatives of the bridegroom. If the parents of the bride cannot pay as per demand, the wife is often subject to inhuman torture and at times are even killed by her husband or his family. Very often our daily newspapers would reveal news about the tragic results of the dowry system, in which the newly married girls are always the victims of harassment, violence, murder and suicide. Dowry is demanded as though it is a fundamental right of the bridegroom. In spite of the legislation against the practice of dowry, it is persistent in the society. Demands for dowry have even caused brutal deaths. According to an estimate, as many as 4148 dowry deaths were reported in the year 1990 and it increased to 4366 in the year 1993 and to 6205 in the year 1994, this is at the rate of one dowry related death for every 17 minutes.

We can get rid of this social vice by urgently taking reformative action. The first thing to be done to stop this malpractice is to grow awareness among people. Movement against dowry system should start right now.

(The writer is a student of criminology and police science, Mawlana Bashani science and Technology University)