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31

Journalism & Mass Communication / Teen Van

« on: January 12, 2014, 01:57:54 PM »

About the Teen Van
 
For so many teenagers, life seems a struggle, even without the grave complications of homelessness, poverty or untreated illness. But for those who carry all those burdens at once, life can seem impossible.
 
The multidisciplinary staff of the Mobile Adolescent Health Services program, one of Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital’s Community Partnership programs, provides expert care, custom-designed for high-risk youth ages 10-25 who rely exclusively on the Teen Van as their only link to a network of services and knowledge they urgently need. Since 1996, Packard Children’s has been mobilizing its experts and sending them out to meet vulnerable teens.
Program staff includes a physician specializing in adolescent medicine, a nurse practitioner, a social worker, a dietitian and a registrar/driver. The team provides
•   Comprehensive treatment, including immunizations
•   Complete physical exams
•   Acute illness and injury care
•   Pregnancy tests
•   Pelvic exams
•   Sexually transmitted disease testing and treatment
•   Family planning
•   HIV counseling and testing
•   Health education
•   Social services assessment and assistance
•   Referrals to community partners and agencies
•   Substance abuse counseling and referral
•   Mental health counseling and referral
•   Risk behavior reduction counseling
•   Nutrition counseling
All services and medications are provided at no charge to the patients.
Program partners are the high schools and shelters whose employees refer teens to the program, provide space for clinic activities and work collaboratively with the Teen Van team to assure a safety net of health care, social services and educational programs for the youth.
 
During its scheduled visits to these schools and shelters in Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco counties, the Teen Van brings much more than medical care to underserved teens. For many who receive care, the Teen Van provides one of the few reliable and positive supports in their lives, offering much-needed inspiration and relationships.
•   Social workers provide group classes on topics such as violence and dating, anxiety and relaxation, communication in relationships, eating disorders, body image, drug and alcohol education, and how to use health services provided by the Teen Van and in the community.
•   Whenever necessary, classes are augmented by one-on-one, short-term counseling.
•   Cooking classes, individual nutrition counseling, field trips to grocery stores, and access to healthy snacks are facilitated and directed by a dietitian.
•   Art expression and theater projects, developed together by a social worker and dietitian, offer a fun and encouraging forum for relationship-building with the teens and enhances communication among them.
The opportunity to participate in research projects that further the understanding of medical, psychosocial and nutritional issues that impact youth is an aspect of the Teen Van that benefits all our medical service partners and the individuals who rely on them for care. Questionnaires for participating teens draw out social, medical and demographic details, as well as family planning practices and preferences, knowledge of nutrition and nutritional behavior, habits of homeless and uninsured adolescents, and moral development in that population. Additionally, medical students, residents and fellows learn first-hand the very best in the practice of community medicine for underserved youth.
 
Homeless, uninsured and at-risk teens are usually hard to reach and slow to trust. Over its life span, the Teen Van has taken over 8,000 patient visits, all of whom are uninsured and nearly half are homeless.  The Teen Van is clearly making a difference within the underserved youth population as the return visit rate is over 70% with the Teen Van staff seeing approximately 60% young women and 40% young men.

http://www.lpch.org/clinicalSpecialtiesServices/ClinicalSpecialties/MobileHealthClinics/aboutTeenVan.html

32

Journalism & Mass Communication / Reproductive health

« on: December 24, 2013, 03:36:06 PM »

Reproductive health care for adolescents in Bangladesh

by Amal Chakraborty

In both developed and developing countries, generally health is one of the most important sectors that generate tremendous interest of the development planners, health professionals, policy makers and other ideological powers. The basic human rights of the citizens in a country do vary according to their social, political, economic, and religious systems. A Third World country usually prioritize food security, health, and shelter in their development plans rather than the ‘entertainment plaza’. However, majority of the governments in poor countries assign much higher weight on industrial and agricultural growth, rather than health care and ‘right to health services for all’ remained neglected. It can be noted here that lack of funding and supply of inappropriate types of medical care effectively reduce the access of the poor to the health care facilities available in the Third World countries like Bangladesh.

A World Bank report entitled, "In search of healthy Bangladesh: Expectations in the Twenty-First Century", says Bangladesh is at the top of the list with regards to malnutrition, maternal and child mortality. Reasons for these as identified are poverty, illiteracy and largely inadequate health care. A newspaper report says that in Bangladesh 70% mothers and children suffer from malnutrition. Every day 600 children die due to malnutrition and every year a little more than 27,000 mothers die due to pregnancy related diseases and complication. It may be mentioned here that the mortality rate for both child and mother in Bangladesh is higher compared to some other developing countries due to unavailability of easy access to the health care services. Less than 40% of the population in the country has access to basic health care, only 27% pregnant women receive prenatal care, while less than 95% of all deliveries take place at home attended by untrained birth attendants. A recent study report has revealed that a meager 12% of the total health care is used by rural people provided by the government health care facilities.

Adolescent groups in Bangladesh are considered in Bangladesh as the most important segment for health care issues. Adolescent period is remarkably a sensitive period for boys and girls. This is the time when most of them commit mistakes due to curiosity and ignorance. Changes in their body structure and hormonal activity surprise them unless proper knowledge on physiology is imparted to them. The adolescent population in Bangladesh constitutes around 23% of total population numbering nearly 30 million. Currently 48% of the adolescent population are female and 52% male. 20% of total population below 10 years of age plus 23% adolescents totaling 43% of total population is to determine the health and population structure of the country in the years to come.

A recent study in Bangladesh population sector reveals that adolescent population growth rate is much higher at 4.3% compared to 1.7% for total population. It is most likely that this large number of population segment will influence in greater extent the development planning of the authorities concerned in health issues. The challenge in this segment is not only the population growth but also to ensure health of this mammoth size of population in a world that faces the epidemic of AIDS / STD. It is likely that a significant number of population in Bangladesh in general and adolescent group of people in the rural areas of Bangladesh in particular will continue to experience epidemiological transition unless adequate intervention will be undertaken to address the issue, says a national broad sheet report.

Rural girls in Bangladesh, about 75%, are married before reaching their sixteenth birthday and some even before they can reach their puberty. Conservative tradition in our rural society does tremendously affect the health of the rural adolescents, especially the girls. They are oppressed and being maltreated if they deny to be married off quite early. Mothers in 15 - 19 age group have a share of 20% of the total births. The mortality risks for children borne to teenage mothers are substantially higher than that of adult mothers. This mortality risk of course is nonetheless ironic to accept. It has been shown in the health studies that an adolescent faces the highest health risks during pregnancy.

Rural adolescent girls are not well equipped with the reproductive health education, which is in fact a crucial issue to impart to.

International and national GOs and NGOs have been implementing the health programs in Bangladesh over the years. Improvement in the health status of the rural people in general has been noticed. However, complete reduction of health hazards could not be overcome in the rural areas, unless awareness is intensified, health services are made more accessible to the people, and demand driven programs are designed to provide health services at the grassroots level. There should be more investment in the health sector to address the adolescents health issues.

In Bangladesh 20% births to adolescent women are inappropriate and a considerable number of conceptions are unwanted. Unlike the growth rate, mortality rate for adolescent mothers is higher than the national average. Children borne to young mothers are more likely to die early as both mothers and children are highly-risk prone.

Researches in the population sector of Bangladesh have revealed that about 19% of births from adolescent mothers are exposed to higher risk of death. Antenatal, neonatal and postnatal cares for adolescent mothers are very low. Adolescents have empathetically inadequate sexual education. One study suggests that the vast majority rural adolescent have never heard of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) and AIDS.

Adolescent reproductive health is one of the most sensitive health issues that the world has been facing. It is very important to face the challenges that exist in our society.

We should identify the best ways and means to ensure adolescent-friendly services in the socio-cultural setting of Bangladesh.

In addition, identification of what needs to be done to overcome the barriers and thereby ensure creation of a conducive environment will accelerate the process of maximizing reproductive health services utilization by the adolescents.

It is indeed a moral obligation for the Government of Bangladesh, donor agencies, development practitioners and other non-government organizations (NGOs) to prioritise

immediate intervention, both clinical and non-clinical, to curb and prevent adolescent health related problemss in Bangladesh

Source: The Daily Independent, Dhaka, December 31, 2001

http://ruchichowdhury.tripod.com/reproductive_health_care_for_adolescents.htm

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Journalism & Mass Communication / The world of Sarojini Naidu

« on: December 21, 2013, 03:44:39 PM »

Published: Saturday, December 21, 2013
Essay
The world of Sarojini Naidu
Nazma Yeasmeen Haque

This is the first segment of a comprehensive essay on the celebrated Indian poet and politician who remains a point of reference in the history of the Indian subcontinent. — Literary Editor

 

Francis Bacon, philosopher and great essayist of the sixteenth century, once spoke thus about the classification of books: “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested; That is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read but not curiously, and some few to be read wholly and with diligence and attention.”
sorojini naiduSarojini Naidu: A Biography (by Padmini Sengupta and published by Asian Publishing House, India in 1966) falls in the last category. Furthermore, this in one of those books that inspire a reader to know more and more about a person whose life and work have been narrated in every dimension powerfully and in such amazing detail. Padmini Sengupta has known Sarojini Naidu closely and combined with her high erudition, she has very ably taken the readers on a journey into the tumultuous period of history of which the protagonist was an integral and inseparable part. So overwhelming and arduous has been her task that she comments, “Though I know I am inadequate to portray so magnificent a character, I have at least fulfilled my deep desire to write this biography, and to depict a great and good character to the present and future generations of India … . It is impossible for one individual to do justice to a personality which presented so many scintillating facets to the world, and there must be many features of her fife which I have not been alike to probe into or fathom…..”
Padmini Sengupta’s portrayal of Sarojini Naidu as she evolves into a great leader next to Mahatma Gandhi in British ruled India unfolds her life the way a bud blooms into a full grown flower. One feels as if every petal opens up at a time and is distinct in its own colour and fragrance, depicting her multi-dimensional personality. Sarojini Naidu is neatly and beautifully divided into six long parts, each of which is crowned with a quotation — the great leader’s poetry, which is a unique style for opening each part. Sengupta herself manifests a poet’s mind as she names the parts by choosing words that are lyrical from Sarojini Naidu’s poetry. Part one entitled The Pulse of the Morning commences with a verse from her second book of poetry called The Bird of Time, published in 1912. The verse narrates the beauty and splendor of spring and therefore is called The Joy of Springtime.
Both Naidu’s father Aghorenath and mother Varada Sundari were highly talented. That Sarojini was to be a renowned poet pulsating with emoting and ideas not only in her creative work of literary purists but also bring those down to her cherished and broader goal of working for her motherland was very natural as her father was not only a scientist of fame both at home and abroad but also a distinguished poet both in Urdu and Bengali. Sarojini was much admired for the tonal quality of her voice, which assuredly was a gift she inherited from her mother, who was a renowned singer. When she was a girl at school in a village in east Bengal she is said to have won the Viceroy’s Gold Medal for singing. Varada Sundari also wrote beautiful lyrics in Bengali. Such was the atmosphere in their home, where “ there was music, drama and verse, dreaming of great achievement, building of fantastic castles, and above all, the human touch, always present, of catering to friends, rich or poor, beggar or prince. And home, in this rich and artistic background was born and bred Sarojini, together with her brothers and sisters.”
Hers was a home where one could hear a number of languages. Although it was a Bengali family, Sarojini and her siblings never spoke Bengali. In fact, Sarojini could  never read Bengali. The atmosphere at home was enriched with multiple elements, among which a profusion of languages used was one. Sarojini showed early signs of being a dreamer, a nature lover, lover of colours and bright hues. “She was not only colourful herself, but brought and took colour with her wherever she went. Sapphire and gold, scarlet and blue, topaz and saffron, red and purple, these hues and all the colours of the rainbow lit up her poetry, her lectures, her witty repartee at the many soirees and interviews she held, her letters and conversation.”
naiduTwo events from Sarojini Chattopadhyaya’s childhood  are worth narrating, for they are as fascinating as her whole life whether during normal times or in pleasure or pain. As a child she was rather reluctant to learn English (which later on joyfully became her ‘own’ tongue) that her father Aghorenath Chattopadhyaya wanted her to be proficient in. Getting punished for the apparent indifference, later on she started learning it and “spoke to her parents only in English through her mother spoke back to her in Hindustani.” Another event in her pre-teenage is more interesting. Being a serious scientist, although a distinguished poet in Urdu and Bengali, Aghorenath Chattopadhyaya wanted Sarojini to be a great mathematician or a scientist. She writes, “One day, when I was eleven, I was sighing over a sum in Algebra: it wouldn’t come right, but instead a whole poem came to me suddenly. I wrote it down. From that day my poetic career began.”
While in Cambridge at a young age, Sarojini Chattopadhyaya was fortunate to have come in contact with renowned critics like Edmund Gosse and Arthur Symons, both of whom were impressed by her verses written while she was still in her teens and extended their guidance to have her fully bloom as a poet. Having gone through her poems, Edmund Gosse commented, “The verses which Sarojini had entrusted to me were skilful in form, correct in grammar and blameless in sentiment, but they had the disadvantage of being totally without individuality “… He could hear the mocking bird of English poets in them and so he advised her to “set her poems firmly among the mountains, the gardens, the temples, to introduce to us the vivid populations of her own voluptuous, and unfamiliar province; in other words, to be a genuine Indian poet of the Deccan, not a clever machine-made imitator of the English classics.”
Sarojini ‘immediately accepted’ Gosse’s advice and took to writing verses in that light. Soon three of her collections of poetry, The Golden Threshold (1905), The Bird of Time (1912) and The Broken Wing (1917), appeared and drew much appreciation both at home and abroad for which Sarojini gave the credit to Gosse for showing her the way. Gosse describes his first meeting with Sarojini as follows: “When Sarojini Chattopadhyaya — as she then was — first made her appearance in London, she was a child of sixteen years, but as unlike the usual English maiden of that age as a lotus or a cactus is unlike a lily of the valley. She was already marvelous in mental maturity, amazingly well-read, and far beyond a Western child in all her acquaintance with the world.”
This is certainly one of the best compliments Sarojini ever got from her mentor and spoke volumes of her intellectual abilities. Her early poems were mostly lyrical, romantic in nature, with an element of music in them. Nevertheless she was always preoccupied with the thought of going beyond it and there lay her ecstasy for doing something for the people, for her country when she was still young. Advised by Edmund Gosse, Sarojini next based her writings on the magnificent environs of Hyderabad, her hometown in her childhood days and also after she got married. She was fascinated by the Muslim culture in all its aspects and that is probably how she developed her passion for Hindu-Muslim unity, which first grew at her father’s house, a home that was open to all. She says about her home town: “The tradition of Islam has truly been carried out for two hundred years, that tradition of democracy that knows how out of its legislation to give equal rights and privileges to all communities whose destinies it controls.” Elsewhere she says, “The first accents I heard were in the tongue of the Amir of Kusru. All my early association were formed with the Mussalman men and Mussalman women of my city. My first playmates were Mussalman children.” Thus “she steeped herself in Islamic poetry and culture.” She found the ‘lyric genius of Islam’ in Rumi, which she described as immortal. She is so much engrossed in her birthplace that she says:
She how the speckled sky burns like a pigeon’s throat
Jewelled with embers of opal and peridote       .
See the white river that flashes and scintillates,
Curved like a tusk from the mouth of the city gates.
She further describes her favourite river Musi and its surroundings where one must
Hark, from the minaret, how the Muezzin’s call
Floats like a battle-flag over the city of wall.
Although Sarojini Naidu was in the forefront of the struggle for the emancipation of women, a cause for which she wandered the length and breadth of her country relentlessly, she nurtured her penchant for the beautiful women behind the ‘purdah world’ in their exotic surroundings. She spoke of these women as living “in a world within a world.” She was so profoundly fascinated by colour, beauty, grandeur and the serenity of things and people around her that she all her life she remained an aesthete and a connoisseur,  a quality that she brought on to her goal of life, that is, into politics. Her life has been thus exemplary of a philosophy that underlines virtues in the making of good. In the some vein she has given expression to her sentiment regarding the custom of suttee (immolating oneself along with one’s deceased husband) in one of her poems. She praised the women’s love for their husbands and then again questioned if men of today deserve this or not. Although one may sense an apparent contradiction in her feelings and her mission in life, nevertheless one can understand it if one looks at it in a practical way, which is only so human. Sengupta wonders and, along with her we, the readers, ask: what made Sarojini Naidu so great? Rather the question could have been: who moulded her into being what she eventually became? She led a contented life in marriage. Her greatest joy lay in the fact that “her husband realised her genius, not only as a poet but as on orator. He allowed her freely to develop both these talents, for despite revelling in her home life, there seemed to have been longings within her which she could not satisfy, and for which she was compelled to have an outlet.”
What a gift he was in Sarojini’s life! Many a woman in that period and more so in the present-day world would undoubtedly envy her. Bubbling over with energy, enthusiasm, conviction of life culminating in the unity of people of all religions, castes and creeds, she transcended the barrier of being a patriot only to become an internationalist.

Dr. Nazma Yeasmeen Haque is an educationist, critic and music enthusiast


http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/the-world-of-sarojini-naidu/

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Journalism & Mass Communication / Re: আমাদের সাখাওয়াত স্যার........ (Our Shakhawat sir)

« on: December 19, 2013, 04:00:04 PM »

We call him 'The BOSS'. He is the living legend of the country and we are proud to be his students as well as colleagues. We wish his long life so that he will be blessing us all the time.

I already have read the article even then thanks a lot to share this with all specially for them  :)who are yet to know about him in detail.

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Journalism & Mass Communication / Ticfa Agreement

« on: December 19, 2013, 03:54:02 PM »

Published: Monday, November 25, 2013
Why Ticfa?

aftabul islamAftab Ul Islam

IF everything proceeds as per plan, then Bangladesh will most likely sign the Trade and Investment Cooperation Framework Agreement (Ticfa) with the United States today.
In the beginning I would like to stress upon the fact that Ticfa is a platform given by a bilateral contract. It’s not mandatory for any of the signatories to function under any obligations. The main objectives of Ticfa are to address issues and impediments, and analyse trade and commercial relations between two countries. Moreover, it creates scope for taking a critical subject to the respective government authorities that fast tracks a bilateral agreement between them. As for the number of meetings to be held by two the countries, it can be based on the need of the two countries, and will meet not once but 3-4 times a year if required. There are countless Ticfas existing in today’s world that have been proved to be beneficial.
Discussions on the necessity of Ticfa between US and Bangladesh had begun over a decade ago, and it’s mainly due to the complex and slow bureaucratic response from Bangladesh side that the agreement had been hanging in the air for so long. Such delay with regard to signing of the Ticfa along with numerous trade agreements points out an important fact, which is that Bangladesh should have shifted its focus to trade and economic diplomacy from politics oriented diplomacy. There should have been a coordinated approach undertaken by our government and the private sector for signing Ticfa.
Three important features of Ticfa are about labour condition, compliance and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) matters. It is important to mention that Bangladesh will benefit from all the aforementioned features, and if proper actions are taken as per the agreement guidelines then it will be able to regain its suspended GSP facilities too. On top of it, Bangladesh will also have the opportunity to address the 3% of the products on which it draws no GSP benefits too.
On the subject of the poll-time interim government’s signing the Ticfa I hold the view that the poll-time government in Bangladesh is constitutionally legal for signing such treaty.
Linking trade with environment and linking labour issues with trade are the two most important areas where Bangladesh along with other LDC countries have protested to the WTO as well as asked for more time. In this regard I believe that through a joint-cooperation achieved through Ticfa Bangladesh can open new doors for direct foreign investments in Bangladesh.
Trade agreements are becoming challenging with the times. Bangladesh must be prepared to meet the challenges in order to gain the advantages from Ticfa. The need for Ticfa is there, and it can succeed through an all-out effort undertaken by our bureaucracy and the private sector. Ticfa, if negotiated with diplomatic and economic astuteness, can only be good for Bangladesh.

The writer is the president of American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AMCHAM).
http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/why-ticfa/

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Journalism & Mass Communication / Re: গিনেসবুকে ঠাঁই করে নিয়েছে বাংলাদেশের জাতীয় পতাকা

« on: December 19, 2013, 03:44:05 PM »

Just do not be a part of this physically. Feel the power of patriotism and do something which will help keeping the 'red-green' fly high in style all the time.  Good post to be shared and thanks for sharing. All the best.   

37

Journalism & Mass Communication / 42nd Victory Day

« on: December 19, 2013, 03:36:26 PM »

The essence of Victory
Pulsating celebrations of December 16
Fahmim Ferdous
Irrespective of age, gender and class, the whole of Bangladesh was painted in the colours of the flag to mark the 42nd Victory Day. Be it in the apparels, face paints or the smallest of flags, the spirit was identical in every heart, as countless people sang the national anthem in unison. Photo: Star
It’s said a great yardstick of the magnitude of any victory is the magnitude of the battle fought, and by those terms, there are few victories in modern history bigger than that the emergence of Bangladesh. So it should come as no surprise that the anniversary of one of the most costly announcements on the world map will be one of the grandest days in the calendar of any Bangladeshi.
As every year, celebrations were taking place all over the capital; from the smallest area-based cultural organisations to a successful attempt at breaking a World Record, but the biggest celebration of victory was fittingly being held at the same place where the first scintilla of an independent Bangladesh arose from — the iconic Suhrawardy Udyan. Organised by Gonojagoron Mancha — the platform that held the helm of an awakening of spirit this year, the celebration, titled “Bijoy 2013”, had it all — from the essence of the roots in Bhawaiyya and Baul songs, to the heartbeats of the youth in energetic band performances.
The event started with Air Vice Marshall (retd) AK Khandaker — the second-in-command of the Liberation War — delivering the inaugural address, while Dr. Abul Barakat and Dr. Muhammad Zafar Iqbal also spoke on the occasion. Cultural presentations by a wide variety of cultural groups followed, including Ghashphul, Padatik Sangeet Sangsad, Nazrul Sangeet Shilpi Sangstha, Rabindra Sangeet Sammelan Parishad, Surtirtha, Satyen Sen Shilpi Goshthi, Chhayanaut, Music College, Dhaka Sangskritik Dol, Bhawaiyya Angan, Surer Dhara, Wrishij Shilpi Goshthi and Khelaghor.
Familiar songs and tunes echoed through the arena as people from all walks of life gathered, dressed in red and green, to soak in the feeling of victory. They came in families, friends, couples, in big and small bunches, undeterred by the sun and the absence of seats. They sang along with “Mukti’r Mondir Shopano Tole”, “O Bhai Khati Shona’r chaite Khati”, “Nai Nai Bhoy”, “Dhono Dhanne Pushpe Bhora”, “Himaloy Theke Sundarban” and “Bhoy Ki Morone”, chanted along with slogans that were being chanted from the stage in between songs, and enjoyed the recitations of poems of the likes of Sikandar Abu Zafar and Salil Chowdhury.
After a number of Gono-Sangeet performances by artistes of the Shadhin Bangla Betar Kendro, the most-awaited part of the day drew nearer — a choral singing of the National Anthem of all those present at the grounds, and wherever every Bangladeshi was at 4:31pm — the exact time when the Pakistani army surrendered at this very ground on this day 42 years ago. It was preceded by a ‘documentary act’ showing the entire happenings of the surrender, and Professor Emeritus Anisuzzaman delivering an address.
As the air continued to echo the most touching words to any Bangladeshi “Amar Shona’r Bangla, Ami Tomaye Bhalobashi” from thousands of voices, an oath-taking ceremony was administered by AK Khandaker, followed by a symbolic handover of the flag of Bangladesh.
With a “Concert for Freedom” still to go featuring performances by the top bands of the country, and a fireworks display, every single one in the crowd — from toddlers to the elderly, from elites to labourers, from hardcore ‘Gonojagoron’ activists to the casual festival-visitors — felt the pride and joy of victory in their own terms. With a big victory achieved 42 years after the war — by bringing to book a perpetrator against the country — there were reasons to celebrate, and maybe more so to send a message to those opposing the spirit of freedom, that we are the majority, and Bangladesh will never again be in the hands of those who do not acknowledge the independence, sovereignty and secularism of this land.

http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/the-essence-of-victory/

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Journalism & Mass Communication / Re: Climate Change

« on: December 04, 2013, 04:22:21 PM »

Time for all of us to awake in regard to save our environment so that in the long run our climate will  be save to save us. Good one.   

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Journalism & Mass Communication / Re: About Afghanistan

« on: December 04, 2013, 04:17:48 PM »

Good and contemporary one, liked it.

40

Journalism & Mass Communication / Sonali, Agrani to get Tk 2,000cr to fix capital deficit

« on: December 04, 2013, 03:24:19 PM »

Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Sonali, Agrani to get Tk 2,000cr to fix capital deficit
The state banks will go through tough reforms to get the funds
Rejaul Karim Byron
The government will next week provide around Tk 2,000 crore to Sonali and Agrani banks to help meet their capital shortfalls on condition that the state-run banks will go through credit risk-related reforms.
The central bank last week sent the ‘business plans’ of the banks to the Banking Division, credit risk management policy being a major component of the plan, a finance ministry official said.
In the first phase, the government will give four state banks Tk 4,100 crore against their capital shortfall of Tk 8,863 crore.
In line with Bangladesh Bank’s recommendations, Sonali will receive around Tk 1,200 crore and Agrani Tk 800 crore, but Janata and Rupali will get funds next year, the official said.
Sonali and Agrani drew a sector-wise credit growth plan in their credit risk management policy, according to the business plans of the banks.
Sonali Bank showed that its highest credit growth would not exceed 8 percent in the trading sector and 2 percent in the industrial sector.
In line with the International Monetary Fund’s conditions tagged with loans under its Extended Credit Facility (ECF), the government has taken initiatives to meet the capital shortfall of the banks in two phases.
As the banks are facing a huge capital shortfall due to various scams last year, the IMF set a condition that public money will be injected into the banks only if they go through drastic reforms.
The government also apprised the IMF of the reforms, the official said.
Before the IMF approved the fourth instalment of an ECF credit on November 27, the government made a detailed commitment about the reforms.
The government will gradually restore the capital positions of the banks in line with the regulatory capital adequacy standards, conditional on progress on actions agreed under the revised memorandum of understanding, which was signed in September.
The banks have already drafted, among others, a stronger credit risk management policy. Within December, the boards of the banks will formulate an internal control and compliance policy to improve their corporate governance, the government told the IMF.
According to the business plans, the boards of the banks will have to chalk out an independent internal audit programme.
The government also told the IMF that it will impose sanctions on the banks in case of noncompliance with the MoU.
The government has committed to the lender that it will prepare a detailed action plan by March 2014 to bring all branches of the banks under automation.

The Daily Star

41

Journalism & Mass Communication / This December . . . that December

« on: December 04, 2013, 03:20:31 PM »

Wednesday, December 4, 2013
GROUND REALITIES
This December . . . that December
Syed Badrul Ahsan
THIS December is not that December. That winter is not this winter. This country is not that country. That generation is not this generation. But that dream, that old dream of an egalitarian society taking all Bengalis in its fold, is this dream of a state decisively founded on secular democratic expressions.
In December 1971, it was a twilight struggle we waged, the final phase of it, in defence of liberty in this land. It was a dream coming true, through the sacrifices of millions, through the courage of the Mukti Bahini in confronting the Pakistan occupation army across a soon-to-be Bangladesh. In December 2013, the old dream of a people inhabiting a land of freedom resting on individual and collective dignity is threatened with nightmarish visions of all-enveloping despair.
In December 1971, once the land stood liberated, the Mujibnagar government decreed a ban on the Jamaat-e-Islami, Muslim League, Pakistan Democratic Party and Nezam-e-Islam Party in the interest of an inclusive, non-communal and modern political dispensation. In that season of euphoria sailing in on the wings of battlefield triumph, those who had helped the enemy in humiliating the Bengali nation were put to shame and were on the run.
Forty two years on, this nation wages a new war against the successors of the generation of fanatics that picked up teachers, engineers, lawyers and journalists through nine months of a war for freedom and never let them come back home again. In that long-ago December, it was bullets and bayonets that mutilated lives in this land. In this December, it is petrol bombs that are hurled into moving vehicles, the fiendish goal being an incineration of citizens in the sordid interest of bad politics.
That December was a time when democracy triumphed through bringing seventy five million Bengalis together in what was surely a great experiment in pluralism and constitutional government. This December is a long spell of agony democracy suffers from through an unbridled struggle for power that leaves a nation of a hundred and sixty million people reeling from the consequences of the conflict.
This December is a season when the global community implores us to do nothing that will imperil the march of government based on the consent of the governed. That December was a time when the world witnessed the birth of a nation spontaneous in its determination to have the rule of law underpin its institutions. Back then, the world went out of its way to save this nation from being destroyed by a medieval occupation force. Today, that same world worries hugely on the need for this nation to save itself from its brazenly ambitious men and women in the corridors of politics.
In December 1971, international diplomacy stayed supportive of our yearning for nothing less than political sovereignty. As Indian forces assisted our freedom fighters on that final leap to liberation, the Soviet Union made sure that its veto worked long enough for Bangladesh to emerge before a halt to the war could be called.
In December 2013, the United Nations, the United States and the European Union remain busy in the thought that Bangladesh cannot be permitted to fall apart, that its future course depends on the kind of democracy it means to pursue for itself. That December was a point in time when we became the arbiters of our destiny. This December is a winter where foreign powers remain intent on informing us of the course we need to take because we have collectively lost our way.
In 1971, the country roads we knew so well before the war took us back home at the end of it. In 2013, our roads are vulnerable to violence and our homes have mutated into metaphors for despair. In that December, the nation’s political leadership exuded energy and held high the idealism that revolutions build on. In this December, it is a fractured land our political leaders squabble over, with crass materialism gnawing away at our collective vitality.
This December is that harrowing time when statecraft gets increasingly frayed at the edges through a decline of politics in the country. In the struggle for power, parochialism puts paid to all our aspirations of enlightenment.
That December was a dawn when new possibilities rose out of the mist, new dreams took shape on the wings of national ambition, with our revolution being the road map to a territory of political liberalism and cultural creativity.
Now is the winter of our discontent. Then, it was a season that awaited the advent of spring.
Then, it was a spacious Bangladesh, in terms of expression, thought and belief, that was our world. Now, an endless stream of images shows, in slow but sure degrees, the consistent shrinking of space in political discourse.
That December is not this December. That December was when sovereignty cast its cool shadows across the landscape. This December the sense in us grows that perhaps the old revolution was unfinished, that the mountain-top is yet to be reached.
In that December, politics ruled the land in all its fragrant glory. In this December, anti-politics runs riot on the streets and citizens cower in their homes.
In December 1971, Bangabandhu prepared to come home; the Mujibnagar men came home. In December 2013, we wait by the village road in the falling light of day for new, purposeful national leadership to emerge through the sparkle of the stars in our bleak skies, to tell us the future is again ours to seize.

The writer is Executive Editor, The Daily Star.
E-mail: ahsan.syedbadrul@gmail.com

42

Journalism & Mass Communication / Children exposed to violence

« on: December 04, 2013, 03:17:41 PM »

Editorial
Children exposed to violence
Stop holding their future to ransom

VIOLENT political programmes like hartal and blockade are not only causing enormous suffering in public life, but also traumatising the children who are directly or indirectly exposed to these incidents. What is of greater concern is that the adult world of irresponsible politics is gradually sucking into its maw the innocence of children who are being forced to witness, even made to take part in violence.
It is unfortunate that at the critical phase of character formation in the lives of children, they cannot be kept safe and sane even within the four walls of their homes. Sickening sights of mutilated, burnt and blood-stained bodies are screaming out at them from TV screens and newspaper pages. More unfortunate are those whose parents, their near and dear ones, or even themselves are becoming the direct victims of violence. Worse still are the cases where children of poor households, especially of slums and shanties on pavement are being recruited by the political operatives and used as shields to engage in arson attacks on vehicles or pelting stones and explosive devices at buses, cars, trains, or law-enforcers or rival political groups.
Little do these young victims know that their childhood is being thus stolen to fulfil some adults’ selfish and mean ends. The children being put through such experience are undergoing a violent psychological transformation gradually turning them into virtual monsters. If it is not our politicians, who are then to answer for this crime of holding our future generation their political hostage?
Political parties and their leadership, in particular, must come to their senses and stop making children the pawns of their cruel political game.

 The Daily Star, Wednesday, December 4, 2013

43

Journalism & Mass Communication / Railways suffering from insecurity

« on: December 04, 2013, 03:15:14 PM »

Editorial
Railways suffering from insecurity
Authorities need to roll up their sleeves
WITH seemingly unending blockade and people unable to utilise roads for inter-district travel, railway is the only alternative for thousands of ordinary commuters. With railway suffering repeated acts of sabotage that have led to several derailments of trains, we are forced to ask precisely why security has not been beefed up sufficiently to protect this national asset. It is not only derailment, but the acts of arson that have led to the burning of train bogeys. Indeed, by the railway’s own assessment, there are no less than 630 points nationwide that are considered susceptible to sabotage.
We are told that security has been beefed up at these locations. As it turns out, “security measures” turn out to be the deployment of four Ansar members at each point. Precisely how four members of Ansar are to deter a determined group bent on causing havoc appears to have eluded the authorities. Such half hearted measures have not brought desired results. Deliberate acts of sabotage continue to happen and people remain at the mercy of higher powers. The situation is not just sad, it is pathetic. Obviously, the authorities need a reality check. Serious security measures like deployment of armed police or paramilitary personnel, deployment of a shuttle train to check rail line safety prior to departure of a regular train service, etc. are all planned but have not been executed as yet. We strongly urge the authorities to treat the matter seriously and, among other steps, bolster cooperation of the people at the vulnerable points of the tracks.


The Daily Star

44

Journalism & Mass Communication / Mass Communication 2

« on: December 04, 2013, 03:06:17 PM »

Methods of Study
Communication researchers study communication through various methods that have been verified through repetitive, cumulative processes. Both quantitative and qualitative methods have been used in the study of mass communication. The main focus of mass communication research is to learn how the content of mass communication affects the attitudes, opinions, emotions, and ultimately behaviors of the people who receive the message. Several prominent methods of study are as follows:
•   Studying cause and effect relationships in communication can only be done through an experiment. This quantitative method regularly involves exposing participants to various media content and recording their reactions. To show causation, mass communication researchers must isolate the variable they are studying, show that it occurs before the observed effect, and that it is the only variable that could cause the observed effect.[8]
•   Survey, another quantitative method, involves asking individuals to respond to a set of questions in order to generalize their responses to a larger population.[9]
•   Content analysis (sometimes known as textual analysis) refers to the process of identifying categorial properties of a piece of communication, such as a newspaper article, book, television program, film, or broadcast news script. This process allows researchers to see what the content of communication looks like.[10]
•   A qualitative method known as ethnography allows a researcher to immerse themselves into a culture to observe and record the qualities of communication that exist there.[11]
Professional organizations
The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication[12] is the major membership organization for academics in the field, offering regional and national conferences and refereed publications. The International Communication Association [13] and National Communication Association (formerly the Speech Communication Association) are also prominent professional organizations. Each of these organizations publishes a different refereed academic journal that reflects the research that is being performed in the field of mass communication.

Source - Wikipedia

45

Journalism & Mass Communication / Mass Communication

« on: December 04, 2013, 03:04:23 PM »

Mass communication
Mass communication is the study of how individuals and entities relay information through mass media to large segments of the population at the same time. It is usually understood to relate to newspaper, magazine, and book publishing, as well as radio, television and film, as these mediums are used for disseminating information, news and advertising. Mass communication differs from the studies of other forms of communication, such as interpersonal communication or organizational communication, in that it focuses on a single source transmitting information to a large group of receivers. The study of mass communication is chiefly concerned with how the content of mass communication persuades or otherwise affects the behavior, attitude, opinion, or emotion of the person or people receiving the information.
Field of study
Mass communication is "the process by which a person, group of people, or large organization creates a message and transmits it through some type of medium to a large, anonymous, heterogenous audience." [1] Mass communication is regularly associated with media influence or media effects, and media studies. Mass communication is a branch of social science that falls under the larger umbrella of communication studies or communication.

The history of communication stretches from prehistoric forms of art and writing through modern communication methods such as the Internet. Mass communication began when humans could transmit messages from a single source to multiple receivers. Mass communication has moved from theories such as the hypodermic needle model (or magic bullet theory) through more modern theories such as computer-mediated communication.
In the United States, the study of mass communication is often associated with the practical applications of journalism (Print media), television and radio broadcasting, film, public relations, or advertising. With the diversification of media options, the study of communication has extended to include social media and new media, which have stronger feedback models than traditional media sources. While the field of mass communication is continually evolving, the following four fields are generally considered the major areas of study within mass communication. They exist in different forms and configurations at different schools or universities, but are (in some form) practiced at most institutions that study mass communication.
Advertising
Main article: Advertising
Advertising, in relation to mass communication, refers to marketing a product or service in a persuasive manner that encourages the audience to buy the product or use the service. Because advertising generally takes place through some form of mass media, such as television, studying the effects and methods of advertising is relevant to the study of mass communication
Broadcasting
Main article: Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the act of transmitting audio and/or visual content through a communication medium, such as radio, television, or film. In the study of mass communication, broadcasting can refer to the practical study of how to produce communication content, such as how to produce a television or radio program
Journalism
Main article: Journalism
Journalism, is the collection and editing of news for presentation through the media, in this sense, refers to the study of the product and production of news. The study of journalism involves looking at how news is produced, and how it is disseminated to the public through mass media outlets such as newspapers, news channel, radio station, television station, and more recently, e-readers and smartphones.
Public Relations
Main article: Public relations
Public relations is the process of providing information to the public in order to present a specific view of a product or organization. Public relations differs from advertising in that it is less obtrusive, and aimed at providing a more comprehensive opinion to a large audience in order to shape public opinion.
Major Theories
Communication researchers have identified several major theories associated with the study of mass communication. Communication theory addresses the processes and mechanisms that allow communication to take place.
•   Cultivation theory, developed by George Gerbner and Marshall McLuhan, discusses the long-term effects of watching television, and hypothesizes that the more television an individual consumes, the more likely that person is to believe the real world is similar to what they have seen on television.[2] Cultivation is closely related to the idea of the mean world syndrome.
•   Agenda setting theory centers around the idea that media outlets tell the public "not what to think, but what to think about." Agenda setting hypothesizes that media have the power to influence the public discourse, and tell people what are important issues facing society.[3]
•   The spiral of silence, developed by Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann, hypothesizes that people are more likely to reveal their opinion in public if they believe that they are of the majority opinion, for fear that revealing an unpopular opinion would subject them to being a social outcast. This theory is relevant to mass communication because it hypothesizes that mass media have the power to shape people's opinions, as well as relay the opinion that is believed to be the majority opinion.[4]
•   Media ecology hypothesizes that individuals are shaped by their interaction with media,[5] and that communication and media profoundly affect how individuals view and interact with their environment.[6]
•   According to the Semiotic theory, communication characteristics such as words, images, gestures, and situations are always interpretive. All sign systems, entitled to be “read” or interpreted, regardless of form, may be referred to as “texts.” In the study of Semiotics, there is no such thing as a literal reading. [7]


Source- wikipedia