& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

To the Editor

Letters will only be considered if they carry the writer's full name, address and telephone number (if any). The identity of the writers will be protected. Letters must be limited to 300 words. All letters will be subject to editing.
Pre-paid electricity
It was a welcome photo (DS May 25) of pre-paid electricity meters being tested by the government before the pilot project in Uttara, to be followed by regular installation (for millions of cards) all over the country. (The political promises should NOT be pre-paid.
There are several immediate impacts: a) it is a huge business for the private sector (more than the mobile phone business);
b) the elimination of human corrupt chains/pickets in the system; and c) clearing the way for introduction of pre-paid cards in gas energy and other sectors for the consumers. (Modernise and quicken the Treasury Challan operation, and payment of government fees and charges; at various points it's too much paperwork and foot pedalling.)
When humans are dishonest, depend on intelligent machines, like computerised systems.
A Mawaz,
Dhaka
Fare meters
As a harassed pensioner, I suggest to the honourable minister for transport (and/or communications) to take a few incognito rides on autorickshaws to taxis fitted with fare meters. And also note: (a) what percentage of the drivers refuses to go anywhere within the DCC zone and (b) how many refuse to go by the fare metre. It is a big persistent racket of blackmarketing, affecting the majority of the citizens, especially those who do not have personal transport.
It shows the authorities are utterly incompetent to handle this unfriendly attitude; and there is still no mechanism for INSTANT action and prosecution. Then why have the fare metres? Also, the mishuks without fare metres are allowed to ply in the metropolis. Thirdly, cycle pedal rickshaws have been banned from the major roads in the city.
What is the big idea in encourag-
ing such anti-people policies? Orders issued cannot be implemented, and there are no examples of deterrent punishment (add, the corrupt police). The accent is on development activities for wooing the poor, while Daily Routine operation and maintenance suffers in each and every sector.
These jobs are left to the bureaucrats, who drive in cars! Where is the motivation for public service? The ministry is busy exploring super-big projects on transportation (DCC has the same mania with off-the-centre projects (cosmetic effect). It is time some ministers are
replaced, in public interest.
Coming back to power is not the first priority. Come back to
whom? Disgruntled citizens? Start from the bottom ladder, and then go up. But we observe helicopter without any root in matribhumi! Who writes the CR
of ministers?
Md. Abad, Dhaka
Pains of death
I was moved to read your reader's letter on Rab (May 12th). She should know the pains of death at the hands of a criminal, having lost her own husband that way. While reading her letter, I was thinking that there was a time, ironically when we were not free, as under the British and even when we were part of Pakistan, when even in a nightmare, no one could dream that people could be killed contemptuously in broad light and there would be no recourse. Why did this change take place? The answer that no one spells out clearly is a simple one but one that must be made to wipe out this cancer in our society. That simple answer is that the killers did not spring out from anywhere. They were deliberately nurtured and protected by politicians in power. Once the politi-
cians in power did that, the police took notice and instead of opposing this growing Frankenstein, they latter made hay over it. The politicians on the opposing side followed suit and created their own "cadre" among the criminals and thus the among of the politician, the police and the criminals was born, sanctioned by those upon whom we handed the destiny of our country.
While thick with the criminals, politicians on both side of the aisle spoke of the need to deal with this criminalisation of our politics. That was lip service till the present prime minister decided to deal with it. The difference she made has been she has allowed the long arm of Rab fall on all, even those in her own party. It is true that under normal circumstances, extra-judicial killings cannot be justified. But then those who wrote those laws on human rights have allowed exceptions, like the Americans in Afghanistan and Iraq. The British have done no
better with their laws to deal with terrorism. There is just no way to root out the cancer of criminalisation of our politics without accepting our situation as exceptional and backing Rab to deal with it. We need to nurture and encourage Rab and our politicians can help by channelling their efforts to keep Rab neutral and above politics.
Shahjahan Ahmed
Dhanmondi, Dhaka
Dead telephones
We, the inhabitants of Fakirerpool, would like to draw the attention of the authorities concerned through this column that we are suffering from telephone problem for the last four weeks.
In the evening of 19 April, all of a sudden we found our telephones dead. At least 40 to 50 telephones are not working in the locality. We have lodged complaints, but without any result.
Would the telephone department look into the matter?
Sufferers
Dhaka
Solar power stations Cheery news in The Daily Star this morning (May 19). The Russians are setting up a solar electric power station in Chittagong, in addition to a conventional electric supply station.
If the solar generation station is economically feasible, then a whole network could be installed all over the country, especially in the backward-linked rural areas, hilly regions and islands. We could pay partly by selling raw materials or finished products.
The government energy policy appears to be rather myopic, with concentration of natural gas only (where are the new LNG/LPG plants?). Only recently some foreign investors have come forward for coal generated elec-
tricity. We should touch the wind turbines and tidal energy technologies with pilot project schemes for feasibility studies in Bangladesh. Why initiative is lacking?
This delta region has vast possibilities for using the daily jawar-bhata (tides) potentialities. Some western countries have considerable experience in sea tide-generated power systems. But transfer of technology to the LDCs is an invisible wall to the donors and investors. It could be due to lack of interest and proposals from the recipient countries. More technocrats have to be involved at higher policy-making levels (ours is a file-pushing Secretariat!). Electric power is there (potentially), but there is no high-level voltage at the planning end!
Abu Abd
Dhaka