Letters
A Rare Example
Our chief justice A B M Khairul Haque had recently gone to a lower court in Dhaka dressed as a general lawyer, without informing anyone. He sat on the lawyers' bench for a while and checked the daily case list. During this inspection, he noticed that five of the judges among the 15, who were supposed to be in attendance, were absent. Such an unannounced inspection rarely takes place in our country. Higher officials regularly inspect lower offices, but the lower officials are informed prior to such events. The offices are cleaned and files and paperwork are organised before the inspection because the lower officials are informed of the time and date of the inspection beforehand. The higher officials, conducting the inspection, therefore never get the real picture. They do not know that the employees in the lower offices are disorganised and do not come in to work on time. Instead of concentrating on office work, they conduct their personal business during office time. The general public does not receive the services that they deserve from these officials. Our commerce minister always likes visiting different markets with an entourage beating drums and announcing his arrival. But does he really know what goes on in these markets on a daily basis? He can only know this, if he inspects them disguised as a common customer. It will do our higher officials some good if they follow our chief justice's example and conduct unannounced inspections.
Md Iqbal Hossain
Dhaka
Our Pavements
 |
Photo: Zahedul i khan |
With the increase in traffic problems, city life is really being adversely affected. Congestion is increasing everyday. The government has undertaken the reconstruction of several roads, but if traffic rules are not respected, this will not be of much help. Footpaths are made for pedestrians, a concept the various mobile tea stall owners, vendors selling different products, beggars and homeless folks just don't seem to understand. With the footpaths crowded, the pedestrians use the roads as they please, jay walking all the time and creating havoc. The government must really take measures starting with clearing out the footpaths and making it illegal to occupy it for any loitering or small businesses. Small steps can take us a long way. We have to start somewhere. Ignoring these problems will not make them go away.
Ahsan Uddin Tohel
SUST, Sylhet
Congratulations to the Tigers
For the last few weeks, our country has been experiencing one tragedy after the other, the Sanaullah killing, railway and Turag tragedy being some of the most shocking ones. In the midst of all these, our cricketers have given us something to celebrate. Their achievement is a huge one for our nation. They won the ODI series against an experienced test playing team for the first time in their career. I would like to congratulate all our cricketers, especially Shakib Al Hasan, an all rounder who has proved himself again. The whole country is delighted with the success of our cricketers.
It is clear now that if they work hard enough, nothing will be impossible. We hope that they will continue to perform well in the upcoming World Cup series. They are our pride and joy and regardless of whether they win or lose, if they perform their best, we will support them with all our hearts. Again, our heartiest congratulations to the team. Go Tigers!
Ratan Adhikary Ratul
BBA, SUST
Sylhet
Changing the young generation
Because of globalisation and satellite channels, our world is changing rapidly. The youngsters in our nation are the ones affected most by this. They are conscious about western fashion trends, new music and movies and a whole new way of life. The proof of this is right in front of our eyes, wherever we go - restaurants, shopping malls, streets, schools you name it. Even young salespersons in malls are fashion conscious. However, things that really require change mostly remain the same. Take for example, our chauvinistic mindset. Crimes such as eve-teasing are increasing in our country. One would think, our liberal minded youth would be aware of the concepts of equal rights and respect for all, along with fashion and music. However, it is disappointing to see that while they have changed their outer appearance, they remain backward and illiterate when it comes to important issues. This is really something to be concerned about.
Subrata Ray
SUST, Sylhet
Online Admission
The year 2010 will be a red-letter day in the history of Bangladesh because this year most of the universities in our country have initiated online admission process. The Predecessor award should be given to Shahjalal Science and Technology University, which had the courage to show the way to the rest. This is certainly a step towards building a digital Bangladesh, which was a prior agenda for the ruling party both in its pre-election pledges and post-election goals. No doubt this is the beginning of a new era but we can still find some loopholes in this process. Firstly, it is an internet-based procedure and most people in our country have limited access to the internet. Where the availability of electricity is so limited, unlimited access to the internet is still a distant dream. Cell phones are more easily available and therefore they must be used for this process instead. We hope more realistic approach will be introduced next year to complete the admission process.
Shakawat Hossain
Govt City College
Chittagong
Submission Guideline:
Letters to the Editor, Star Diary and Write to Mita, with the writer's name and address, should be within 200 words. All articles should be within 1,200 words. A cover letter is not necessary, but every write-up should include the writer's name, phone number and email address (if any). While The Star welcomes unsolicited articles and photographs, it cannot accept the responsibility of their loss or damage. The Star does not return unsolicited articles and photos. Response time for unsolicited write-ups ranges from three weeks to two months. All articles submitted are subject to editing for reasons of space and clarity.
All materials should be sent to: The Star magazine, 19 Karwan Bazar, Dhaka-1215, Fax: 880-2-8125155 or emailed to: <thestarmagazine@gmail.com>
It is recommended that those submitting work for the first time to The Star take a look at a sample copy beforehand. Our website is: http://www.thedailystar.net/magazine
Copyright (R) thedailystar.net 2010
