The Gold Rush

Recent incidents of gold seizures have exposed that some of the top officials of Bangladesh Biman are involved in smuggling.

| Khondoker Tazuddin |

Customs Intelligence raided a Biman flight and recovered 106 kilogram gold bars worth nearly BDT470 million from its toilets on April 26, 2014 and arrested a flight engineer in this connection

Almost every other day, smuggled gold is being captured at the airports of the country, and no law-enforcement drive seems to be sufficient to put an end to the trafficking of this precious metal into Bangladesh. According to intelligence information, along with top officials of Bangladesh Biman, many influential people are involved in this illegal trade and the problem lies very much within the system. In their opinion, it will never be possible to eliminate gold smuggling unless the actual culprits can be arrested and tried.

Bangladesh is now being used as a safe route to smuggle gold. International smugglers get the gold from Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Malaysia, and Hong Kong, and then this gold is trafficked into India. India has a demand for 163,000 kilograms of gold every year. It is estimated that 500 kilograms of gold is trafficked from Bangladesh to India per day. From Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, 5077 kilograms of gold is being trafficked, which means smugglers get the gold from various countries of the Middle East and traffick it into India. To carry out successful smuggling of gold, they usually maintain links with top officials of Biman, influential politicians, customs officers, police administration, and others. So in reality, the administration is partially helping in gold smuggling.

Since the 1980s, Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and Shah Amanat International Airport have been used as gold-smuggling routes. Considering the geographical location and weak security management of Bangladesh, international gold smugglers use it as a safe transit for their contraband. According to customs data, in 1985 there was an 85 kilogram gold haul. In 1986, it rose to 120 kilograms. In 1987, the amount captured was 135 kilograms, which increased to 140 kilograms in 1988, 146 in 1989, 156 in 1990, 166 in 1991, 199 in 1992, 177 in 1993, 180 in 1994, 198 in 1995, and 05 kgs of gold in 1996. The place from April 013 014 18 Customs Intelligence and Investigation Department of the month of October, according to X, capturing a total of 630 kg of gold, 874 grams or 874 grams of 18 kg measures, which is more than the gold seized in the past 5 years. The market price of gold seized during this time was well over BDT3 billion. Customs Intelligence arrested 82 people in connection with the smuggling of the recovered gold.

Indians have a great fascination for gold, both in terms of jewelry and storage value. Wedding ceremonies are not possible without exchange of gold jewelry. Hindu devotees give gold as a gift to their deities in temples. In India there is a festival called 'Diwali' when it is mandatory for a husband to gift gold ornaments to his wife. The sale of gold on this particular day is believed to be more than the sale of gold during the rest of the year in India. Gold smuggling, therefore, comes as a natural outcome of this ravenous demand for the precious metal amongst its 1.3 billion people. The price of smuggled gold is five thousand taka per bhori of 11.664 grams.

Recent incidents of gold seizures have exposed that some of the top officials of Bangladesh Biman are involved in smuggling. The chairman of Biman, air vice-marshal (retd) Jamaluddin Ahmed's name has been mentioned for giving indirect blessings to traffickers. Investigation has revealed that his biological son, Zubair Ahmed, and godson Mahmudul Haque Palash, joined hands to run a smuggling syndicate. Country Manager, Kazi Syed Ahsan used to allegedly help them from Dubai. Investigation has found that this syndicate was working behind all the smuggling scenes since 2010. Mahmudul Haque Palash, godson of Biman's Chairman, and his airhostess wife, Nurjahan, used to do all the negotiations.

During the police remand, Palash informed that starting from the sweeper, trolley men, pilot, cabin crew, officers and employees working at different levels of the national airline, security guards and others at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, are all associated with smuggling. In the questioning, Palash also informed that police and law-enforcement personnel, members of the intelligence, even some yellow journalists of national newspapers, used to get regular commissions. With their collaboration, at least 60 kilograms of gold entered the country every day. Two general managers and one deputy general manager of Biman used to get paid 1.5 million taka every day for their support to the smugglers. These three officers were Mominul Islam, general manager for security, Atik Sobhan, general manager for airport service and former general manager of BFCC, and Shamim Nazrul, deputy chief of Training. Moreover, deputy general manager Emdad Hossain was also amongst the abettors. Director of administration, Rajpati Sarkar, used to control everything at HSIA on behalf of the godfather of gold smuggling, Palash.

Every month this syndicate allegedly trafficked 2 metric tons of gold through HSIA. Twenty metric tons of gold was smuggled every year. In the past three years, smugglers have paid commissions worth BDT1.65 billion taka for gold trafficking.

In the investigation, the names that came out as gold smugglers are, Shona Mujib, Shona Kamal, Shona Siraj, Shona Monir, Shona Kader, Taposh, Morshed Kamal, Mintu, Nizam, Hasan, Abu Miah, Riyaz, Ehsan, Shona Babu, Roman, Abbas, Najir, Rofique, Faruk, Abu Saleh, Miah Jahangir, Sumon, Ali, Emran Ali, Mokid Miah, Abdus Shohid, Miron Ali, Mamun, Joy, Kalu Miah, Rasel, Bozlu Haque Dulu, Kamal Hussain, and Mobarak Hossain. Apart from them, Mohammad Ali, Jamil Hussain, Jamil Ahmed, and Hussain Askar Babu are alleged to be amongst the gold smuggling kingpins.

Flight safety officer, Kamrul Hasan Bipu, and Zafer Ahmed have been arrested by RAB in connection with gold smuggling. In the interrogation they confessed that in 2013 alone, they smuggled gold worth BDT10 billion via airports in the country.

Indian traders are working in cahoots with their Bangladesh counterparts to run the gold smuggling business. Indian gold makers Suresh Karan, Julhash Mia, Rajiv Shubro, Niaz Kumarji, Shamol Saha, and Rampal, are involved in this smuggling from the other side of the border. Pakistani nationals Ajmal Helal, Mohammed Ali, Ghias Hazari, Md. Sulaiman Abdur Rahim Jinnath, and Asif Mehdi are also involved in gold smuggling.

From Hong Kong this smuggling is monitored by Pappu Sajel. UAE citizens Hammam al-Habib, Asif Murshedy, Rasul Amin, Jubba, Piashar Marhabi, Ramatul Faraji are members of this gang. Dubai expatriate Bangladeshi citizens, Shafiqul Alam Mintu, Abbas, and Shahin, buy gold and make arrangements to send the gold to Bangladesh. Nozrul Islam Liton, Jibon Podder, Babul Podder, Anisur Rahman Sinha, Ripon, Kader, Hasan, and Emon work for them. Liton amongst them has already been arrested and sent to jail.

It emerged from investigations that cars carrying the smuggled gold are tagged with MP stickers and are taken to Jibonnagar of Chuwadanga. From there the gold is taken to the border by motorcycle. All the arrangements used to be made by Palash so that the gold reached Chuwadanga safely. Indian citizen Biswajit, Biplob, Shibh, Pankaj, and Babu used to come to Bangladesh to receive the gold. In addition, Indian citizens Gauhar Lalu, Govinda, Bijan Halder, Laxman, Gopal, and Rupsaha came via the Shatkhira border to take gold from Bangladesh. They were supported in various ways by former customs officer Wajed, and Rekha Parvin of Civil Aviation, flight officers of Biman, Shahjahan Siraj, Imran Ali, Abdul Matin and Anisul Haque, Chuwadanga's Dilip Babu and Giridhari Lal provided logistic support to the smuggling syndicate.

Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport is controlled by a man named Jasim. He has an agreement with the smuggling ring. This man does not smuggle gold only by airways, but from Malaysia and Myanmar by sea. It is believed that a parliament member from Jessore may be involved in gold smuggling with Jasim.

Investigators have come to know that some money exchange organizations are also involved in smuggling gold. Zakir of Anik Money Exchange, Tipu of Bhai Bhai Money Exchange, Ali Newaz of Dhaka Money Exchange, Jahangir Miah of Paramount Money Exchange, and Bakaul Miah of Zakir Money Exchange are part of the syndicate. Already, Harun-ar-Rashid, the owner of Farhana Money Exchange in Uttara, has been taken into custody.

While gold smuggling at HSIA and the involvement of Biman officials are now open secrets, it is said that 5 percent of the daily amount of smuggled gold is deliberately given away to keep the intelligence team busy so that the rest 95 percent of gold can have safe passage. When asked about the involvement of his son and godson in gold smuggling, irregularities and corruption, Biman chairman Jamal Uddin Ahmed replied, "I demand a fair and impartial investigation into gold smuggling. There are vested quarters inside and outside Bangladesh Biman who are trying to malign the board. Palash is known to me, but that does not make him my godson. Why would I take responsibility for his actions? I did not support him in smuggling and my son is not involved in it either. An organized gang has forced Palash to get into this business and time will make everything crystal clear."■

Global FDI inflows decline in 2014: UNCTAD

Global foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in 2014 slid by 8 percent to an estimated 1.26 trillion dollars, said the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in its latest report yesterday.
Factors behind the decline included the fragility of the global economy, policy uncertainty, and geopolitical risks, according to the latest edition of the UN organization's regular report Global Investment Trends Monitor.
With its 2014 FDI inflows estimated at 128 billion dollars - some 3 percent up from the previous year - Chinese mainland overtook the United States to become the largest FDI recipient in the world in 2014, UNCTAD's James Zhan told a press conference.
Zhan explained to Xinhua that it was mainly due to a growth of inflows in the service sector, and as well as a drop in investment flows to the United States, which fell to third place in 2014.
The UNCTAD report showed that FDI flows to developed economies as a whole dropped by 14 percent in 2014 to an estimated 511 billion dollars, with FDI inflows to the United States falling to an estimated 86 billion dollars, while those to the European Union rose by 13 percent to an estimated 267 billion dollars.
Developing economies saw a brighter outcome in terms of capital inflows last year, reaching a record high of over 700 billion dollars which accounted for 56 percent of global FDI flows, the report noted, adding that the expansion was mainly driven by developing Asian markets, the world's largest FDI recipient region.
By contrast, transition economies experienced a decline of 51 percent in their FDI inflows, reaching an estimated 45 billion dollars as a result of regional conflicts and sanctions imposed on Russia.
FDI flows to Russia were estimated to have fallen by 70 percent to an estimated 19 billion dollars, due to both the country's negative growth prospects and the withheld equity investments from major oil and gas companies based in developed economies, said the report.
It also noted that as for Ukraine, which was bogged down by ongoing violence, FDI inflows to that country turned negative to - 0.2 billion dollars.
Moreover, cross-border mergers and acquisitions rebounded strongly in 2014, reaching their highest level since 2011 with an increase of 19 percent to 384 billion dollars. Strong performances were seen in finance, pharmaceutical, metal, and communications and media industries, said the report.
As for the outlook of a solid FDI rise for the year ahead, UNCTAD saw the road still bumpy and uncertain.
UNCTAD warned that a sluggish global economy, coupled with growth tempered by hesitant consumer demand, volatility in currency markets, and geopolitical instability hindered the investment pace.
From a regional perspective, the UN organization pointed out that the increasing divergence in economic growth between the United States, the eurozone and Japan would lead to different patterns of FDI, while in developing and transition economies, slower growth prospects in some emerging markets and regional conflicts were likely to affect investment negatively.
In spite of those risks, the report also shed light on the positive factors, saying that transnational corporations were expected to gradually increase strategic investments and to deploy part of their record level cash holdings.
Moreover, stronger economic growth in the United States, the demand-boosting effect of lower oil prices, and proactive monetary policy in the eurozone could support increased FDI flows. 

GENEVA, Jan. 30 (BSS/Xinhua)

ENVIRONMENT World's largest mangrove forest

If there is no mangrove forests, then the sea will have no meaning. It is like having a tree without roots, for the mangroves are the roots of the sea." - a fisherman on the coast of the Andaman Sea .

The Sundarbans is the largest contiguous block of mangrove forest remaining in the present day world. Along the mouth of the Bay of Bengal, it extends over 10,000 square kilometres in Bangladesh and India . Some 60 percent of the forest lies in Bangladesh and the rest in the Indian state of West Bengal . Said to be named after its maiden Sundari tree species, the Sundarbans is a globally significant ecosystem rich in bio-diversity providing habitat for around 334 plant and 453 animal species, including the world famous Royal Bengal Tiger. Several critically endangered species like rare sharks also find refuge in this forest containing Sundari, Gewa, Goran, Keora, Passur, Baen and many other trees and plants.

Besides its ecological value, more than four million people who live around the Sundarbans derive part of their subsistence extracting resources including fisheries, fuelwood, and non-wood forest products like honey. Livelihood of million others also indirectly depends upon this rich forest.

Every year a good number of tidal surges hit Bangladesh 's south and southwestern coastline and the Sundarbans bears the brunt acting as a vital barrier against all such calamitous lashings of the nature to protect the country's southwestern coastlines including the regional towns and cities like Mongla and Khulna .

What is mangrove forest
"One perceives a forest of jagged, gnarled trees protruding from the surface of the sea, roots anchored in deep, black, foul-smelling mud, verdant crowns arching toward a blazing sun...Here is where the land and sea intertwine, where the line dividing the ocean and continent blurs, in this setting the marine biologist and the forest ecologist both must work at the extreme reaches of their disciplines." That was how the Scientific American, a US specialised journal, described the mangrove forest in its March 1996 issue.

Growing in the inter-tidal areas and estuary mouths between land and sea, mangroves, able to tolerate saline water, provide critical habitat for a diverse marine and terrestrial flora and fauna. Healthy mangrove forests are key to a healthy marine ecology.

World's largest mangrove forest
The main feature of the Sundarbans, which is likely to mesmerize a lone tourist, is its unique silence. Without doubt, one's first impression of the dense forest will be its great silence. Forest creatures are very shy, but as the visitor picks his way along the trail or the water bodies around, which occupy one third of the Sundarbans Reserve Forest (SRF), he will realise how alive it is. Numerous living organisms are discreetly watching and waiting whilst one passes through their protective home. From time to time, the complete tranquillity will be shattered by a darting forest bird or a group of noisy monkeys jumping through the trees, disturbing the secretive residents and setting up a chain reaction when the ever-wary forest comes to a colourful and boisterous life for a moment, until silence reigns again.

Mangroves across the world are not particularly diverse in terms of their floristic composition, especially compared with rainforest ecosystems. While up to 75 species are recognised as genuine mangrove plants, the floristic composition of the Sundarbans is made up of 60 plus species. According to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) no other mangrove ecological niche in the world offers such a variety of associate mangrove vegetation as the Sundarbans does.

Despite large scale indiscriminate felling of trees due to management problems, the natural regeneration process has kept the SRF alive and growing all the time. While all other forests in the world are being more and more technically managed and their soil productivity, regeneration of plants, reproduction of wildlife are controlled and monitored regularly as they are tending to lose their erstwhile individual characteristics, the SRF is continuing to evolve new and newer bio-geo-chemical cycles. However, it is also clear that the well-defined boundaries of rivers and canals and perhaps the presence of widely feared what the locals traditionally refer to as "maternal uncle" (the Royal Bengal Tiger) have added significantly to protecting the forest.

Ecology of the Sundarbans
The Sundarbans soil is characterized as moderately to slightly saline zone in the east and highly saline zone in the west. Its ecosystem is characterised by a very dynamic environment due to the effect of tide, flooding, salinity and even the cyclones. The fragile and intricate mangrove ecosystem depends on many variable components like tides, salt contents in water and soil, duration of sunlight, contents of sediment and organic matter in water, temperature and density of seawater and fresh water. The composition of terrestrial and marine flora and fauna also plays an important role in the mangrove ecosystem. If sun is regarded as the source of all energy flow, water must be considered as the nursing mother of an ecosystem.

World's largest mangrove forest under threat
Mangrove forests are one of the most productive and bio-diverse wetlands on earth. Yet, these unique coastal tropical forests are among the most threatened habitats in the world as experts' fear they may disappear more quickly than inland tropical rainforests because of lack of public notice. The Sundarbans too is no exception.

Most experts agree that due to direct and indirect impact of human interventions, far-reaching changes are taking place slowly but steadily -- affecting the delicate Sundarbans ecosystem.

Much of such changes are not clearly visible. Direct human impacts are further worsened by the less- readily detected but perhaps more menacing impacts which threaten the mangrove ecosystem. Massive changes in both the adjacent agricultural lands and upstream areas with construction of polders, embankments or barrages are feared to have been generating fundamental changes in the hydrological regime of the Sundarbans.

The changes in freshwater flushing are visibly caused by gradual eastward shift of the flow of the Ganges River . The change is acknowledged as being historical in nature although the more recent impact of the Farakka Barrage in India and subsequent siltation in the Gorai is accelerating the process. It is believed that the changes affecting the salinity, flood intensity and periodicity, erosion, siltation and sedimentations may all be factors for perplexing and worrisome loss to the world's largest mangrove system.

A number of species like Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis), swamp deer (Cervus duvauceli), gaur (Bos gaurus), hog deer (Axis porcinus) and marsh crocodile (Crocodilus palustris) became extinct during the last 100 years from the Sundarbans.

The Royal Bengal Tiger is an inseparable part of the legend attached to the Sundarbans. The tidal mangrove forest is a rare habitat for this tiger species. But today they have been pushed due to habitat shrinkage. The SRF tiger population estimate in the past 20 years remained in the range of 350 to 400, the largest discrete population of the species in a single tract of natural habitat in the world.

But the preservation of the Royal Bengal Tigers is, by far, the most important challenge for those concerned for the protection of Sundarbans bio-diversity.

Incidental mortality due to diseases, illegal hunting and subtle changes in the Sundarbans ecosystem poses a serious risk for the survival of the Royal Bengal Tiger. Apart from that, the interaction with humans in the area, particularly the killing of humans by tiger, complicates the management of the area. IUCN has listed it as an endangered species in its Red Book.

The marsh crocodiles, once abundant, are already extirpated. The salt-water crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) still survives in low densities and like the marsh crocodiles its population is being reduced through indiscriminate hunting and trapping for skins, quite apart from the immediate conflict with men. Despite an apparent reduction in illegal trade in its skin, the population shows little sign of recovery.

Some 30 species of snakes have been recorded in the SRF and there appears to have been a general decline in densities or at least in their sighting particularly in the past two decades. The Rock Python (Python molurus) is one of the valuable SRF snake species, which is said to have declined over recent years. IUCN has listed it as a "vulnerable species."

The results of four independent inventories undertaken over the past seventy years indicate that the overall volume of wood per hectare has decreased. Moreover, closer analysis of three inventories undertaken in 1959, 1983 and 1996 indicate a marked reduction in total standing volume for the two principal species of economic importance, Sundari and Gewa.

According to studies carried out at different times by the forest department, British ODA and UNDP/FAO sponsored Forest Resource Management Plan, the mean volume per hectare of the Sundari tree was 34.5 in 1959. The volume was reduced to 19.9 in 1983 and 17.8 in 1996. In case of Gewa, the mean volume per hectare was 8.7 in 1959, which was reduced to 4.6 in 1983, and 2.1 in 1996. The dramatic decrease is blamed on their over exploitation, legally and illegally, because of their commercial value and subtle changes in the ecosystem. A number of issues related to the Sundari, Gewa and Goran trees have emerged for immediate concerns of the foresters.

According to experts, the reasons for the decline in Sundari (Heriteria fomes) are twofold. First, as a valuable timber species with real commercial value, it has been subject to heavy exploitation. Second, increasing salinity as a subsequent impact of the subtle ecological changes, noticeable increase in salinity and siltation have resulted in hostile anaerobic conditions in which the Sundari finds it difficult for healthy respiration. This has resulted in die back whereby the tree is progressively defoliated from the top downwards. The phenomenon, in fact an infectious disease, is called "top dying." The infectious top-dying disease of Sundari causes another management problem as experts said poor execution of infected trees invalidates the basic rationale for the "sanitation/salvage" method to save the uninfected trees. Long delays between marking and cutting causes more trees in an area affected by top dying eventually exposing them to "axes instead of saws."

With regard to Gewa, forest officials say high pressure from deer populations in some areas of forest patches have caused nil regeneration of the species, leaving the areas under-stocked. The decline in Gewa (Excoecaria agallocha) is largely attributable to harvesting of around 50,000 m3 per annum as feedstock to Khulna Newsprint Mill for the production of newsprint over the years. Experts say there is apparently little respect for the basic rule of leaving one stout stem to aid re-growth while cutting Goran trees, the second largest tree species of the SRF as all available merchantable stems are being cut from one area. However, acknowledging the importance of forest resources exploitation on a sustainable basis, the Forest Department imposed a logging moratorium in 1989 on all timber species except Gewa in the SRF.

Many factors contribute to mangrove forest loss, including the charcoal and timber industries, legal and illegal logging, oil spill, tourism industries, unplanned development projects, urban growth pressures, and mounting pollution problems. However, one of the most recent and significant causes of mangrove forest loss in the past decade has been the consumer demand for luxury shrimp, or "prawns", and the corresponding expansion of destructive production methods of export-oriented industrial shrimp aquaculture along the forests.

No discussion of the ecology of the SRF would be complete without noting the problem of water pollution. Pollution from various sources is a major determinant of water quality -- both in riverine and coastal areas of the Sundarbans. As approximately one third of the nearly 600,000 hectares of the Sundarbans area consists of tidal channels, and most of the reminder is subject to periodic inundation, impacts of water pollution are potentially very widespread.

The main threat today may come from outside the area in the form of pollution. On the northern edge of the area, Mongla , Bangladesh ' second seaport, is situated. This port and its associated marine traffic is a frequent source of oil spills and there is a permanent risk of accidents with chemicals. Moreover, toxic products (pesticides, etc.) and urban wastes enter the system due to upstream pollution in the huge Ganges catchment. Pollution may not be a direct source of mortality, but it may also reduce the health of the forests, increasing the mortality rate of the flora and fauna on the long term. Many products such as pesticides have also been proved to reduce the reproductively (birth rate) in animal populations.

Almost all Khulna-based industries like the match factories, fish processing plants, jute mills, steel mills, the Khulna Shipyard and newspaper mills discharge liquid or solid wastes directly into the Bhairab-Rupsha river system.

A very densely populated area surrounds the SRF. Around 1.2 million local users reside seasonally in the area for fishing and other resource use activities. Commercial hunting was a problem mainly before the 1970s and this resulted particularly in a serious depletion of the crocodile populations and to a lesser extent to the deer population. Although wildlife protection has improved significantly in the last decades, illegal hunting is still occurring on an incidental basis and fishery is having an adverse impact on the remaining turtle and crocodile populations as these animals are frequently caught up in fishing nets.

Due to natural processes the role of the Sundarbans to discharge the water of the Ganges and Brahmaputra catchment is decreasing as main waterways are shifting eastwards. As a result, the salinity of the Sundarbans is increasing -- particularly in the western region. Further, the total annual discharge is decreasing due to intensifying land use (dams, irrigation) upstream. The role of this change is not yet clear, but is evident that it will influence wildlife populations and vegetation in the long term.

The expanding shrimp farming in the greater Khulna region has caused wide concerns for the rich bio-diversity of the Sundarbans. Experts say indiscriminate shrimp and salt cultivation already destroyed the valuable mangrove forest in Chokoria Sundarbans and fear that the ecosystem of the SRF too would be in jeopardy for the same reason in the near future. The fisheries department reckons that some 200 billion different fish fries are destroyed every year in course of gathering two billion shrimp fries from the water bodies along the Sundarbans due to the crude methods adopted for the purpose. Observers believe that the environmental and social losses would eventually eclipse profits from the shrimp sector.

Forest department officials admit that though slowly far-reaching changes are taking place pervasively in the Sundarbans. These arise from direct and indirect impacts of human influence in the area causing widespread quantitative and qualitative degradation of the resource base throughout the Sundarbans eco-system. According to forest inventory, it is clear that the level of illicit takeoff, some purely illegal and some quasi-sanctioned, may be quite larger than what could be scientifically justified for sustainable management of the SRF.

Consequence of mangrove deforestation
In many areas of the world, mangrove deforestation is contributing to fisheries declines, degradation of clean water supplies, salinization of coastal soils, erosion, and land subsidence, as well as the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. In fact, mangrove forests fix more carbon dioxide per unit area than phytoplankton in tropical oceans.

With regard to the Sundarbans, experts have sounded caution that destruction of the forest will not only affect the ecology but cause far reaching impacts on national economy and causing immense damage to the marine resources of the Bay of Bengal, still economically unexplored and unexploited by Bangladesh. The loss of the Sundarbans would also expose the entire southwestern region of the country to frequent cyclones and tidal surges.

Mangrove forests once covered three-fourths of the coastlines of tropical and sub-tropical countries. Today, less than 50 percent of that is surviving. And then again, of this remaining mangrove forests, over 50 percent has been degraded and not in good form. Greater protection measures should be taken for maintaining high quality mangrove forests like the Sundarbans -- a World Heritage Site.

BB issues guidelines for large loan restructuring

Bangladesh Bank (BB) issued a guidelines for large loan restructuring, allowing more time for the borrowers who are unable to pay back their loans due to 'unavoidable circumstances'.
The minimum outstanding loan amount should be Taka 500 crore or more in aggregate, the guidelines, issued on Thursday, said.
The guidelines were issued following a board meeting of BB on Tuesday with Governor Dr Atiur Rahman in the chair. The meeting observed that the borrowers affected by 'various external and domestic factors beyond their control' require necessary policy support.
According to the guidelines, loans of a particular borrower or group in a bank, singly or in clubbed together form, shall be eligible for restructuring. Borrower having exposure in multiple banks may also approach by forming a consortium. Restructuring facility will be provided to a particular loan account only once.
The restructured loan shall have a maximum tenure of 12 years for term loan and six years for demand and/or continuous loan.
The interest rate, to be charged against the outstanding balance of the restructured loan, may be at a discount from the prevailing declared rate of the bank, but in any case, it shall not be less than the cost of fund plus 01%. The restructured loan shall be paid by the borrower in quarterly installments.
The borrower may be allowed a moratorium period of maximum 12 months within the total tenure of the restructuring. Interest during the moratorium period shall be capitalized.
Restructuring shall be effective upon receipt of down payment in the form of cash of at least 02% of the outstanding amount if such amount is less than Taka 1,000 crore and 01% if the total is Taka 1,000 crore or above.
Reduction of interest liability may be considered by the bank as per existing policy on interest waiver issued by BB from time to time based on the repayment capability of the borrower and adequacy of provision to absorb loss by the bank.
Failure to pay two consecutive installments shall be considered as default and the restructured facility will stand cancelled.
All restructured loans shall be treated as Special Mention Account (SMA) for the purpose of classification. Provision shall be calculated at existing applicable rate of SMA with additional 1%.
Moreover, provision kept on the loan prior to restructuring shall be eligible for transferring to General Reserve Account in case there is provision surplus against all classified loans.
In case of default, the restructured facility shall stand cancelled and the loan shall be classified as per the existing policy. Bank shall take all possible legal steps for recovery of such defaulted loans, failing which may result in bank filing suit under the Bankruptcy Act, 1997.
Any new financing facility or enhancement of existing credit facility subsequent to the restructuring agreement for the business concern or group of companies can be considered by the respective bank in accordance with the Bank Company Act.
Bank shall set up a special cell headed by Head of Recovery for continuous monitoring of the restructured loan and the cell shall submit a quarterly report to the Board of Directors through Risk Management Committee of the Board. This report must contain, among others, compliance progress of the restructuring terms and conditions.
The board of directors of the bank shall review such quarterly report and forward the same along with its specific observations to the Department of Off-site Supervision of BB through the chief executive officer or managing director of the bank. 

DHAKA, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS)

Top Congress figure lashes out at India's Rahul Gandhi

  Beleaguered Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi came under new pressure Friday when a former minister accused his aides of waging a dirty tricks campaign against her and said his Congress party was undemocratic.
Jayanthi Natarajan, environment minister in the last Congress government, said she was resigning from the centre-left party and aimed several parting
shots at the 44-year-old Gandhi who oversaw its disastrous showing in last May's general election.
In a letter to party president Sonia Gandhi -- who is also Rahul's mother -- Natarajan accused his office of "planting stories" in the media and making her a scapegoat for delays in environmentally sensitive projects.
"A hysterical, vicious, false and motivated campaign was orchestrated against me," Natarajan said at a subsequent press conference in the southern city of Chennai.
Natarajan said she had come under pressure from Gandhi while in office to hold back approval for mega projects and was then stunned to hear him publicly criticise the delays in a speech to industrialists.
"I was never a bottleneck, nor was I ever responsible for unwarranted delays in major projects, and I can prove this at any time," said Natarajan, who quit the government months before the elections, which were won by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Rahul has been heavily criticised in the media for his lacklustre leadership in the elections, in which Congress recorded its worst ever
showing and lost power to new Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP.
However few in the party have gone public in criticising either Rahul or his mother, who is the widow of the slain former premier Rajiv Gandhi.
Natarajan said there was no "inner democracy" in the party and she felt she could no longer function in such a "suffocating atmosphere".
Most analysts believe Congress is facing further humiliation in Delhi's
state elections next month when it is forecast to come a distant third behind
the BJP and an anti-corruption party that won power last time. 

NEW DELHI, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS/AFP) 

Bomb attack at Pakistani mosque kills at least 12: officials

A bomb blast at a Shiite mosque in
southern Pakistan Friday killed at least 12 people and wounded dozens more, officials said, in the deadliest sectarian attack to hit the country in more than a year.
The bomb exploded as worshippers attended Friday prayers in the town of
Shikarpur in Sindh province, around 470 kilometres (300 miles) north of
Karachi.
Pakistan has been hit by a rising tide of sectarian violence in recent years, most of it by hardline Sunni Muslim groups targeting Shiite Muslims, who make up around one in five of the population.
Sindh provincial health minister Jam Mehtab said "at least 12 people have been killed and more than 40 injured".
Shaukat Ali Memon, the medical superintendent of Civil Hospital in Shikarpur gave a death toll of 20, but there was no confirmation of the higher figure.
It is the bloodiest single sectarian attack in Pakistan since January 22 last year, when 24 Shiite pilgrims returning from Iran were killed when their bus was bombed in southwestern Baluchistan province.
Friday's attack came as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited Karachi, the capital of Sindh province, to discuss the law and order situation in the city.
Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city and economic heartbeat has wrestled for several years with a bloody wave of criminal, sectarian and politician murders. 

KARACHI, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS/AFP) 

Greece will stay in eurozone: French PM

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls sought to reassure Chinese concerns about the eurozone today, insisting that Greece will stay part of the single currency.

"Greece will remain, must remain, in the eurozone, the new Greek prime minister has said, it can not be any other way," Valls said, referring to the radical left-wing politician Alexis Tsipras.

There was "no need to worry" about a possible Greek exit from the single currency, Valls told Chinese journalists on the second day of a three-day trip to the Asian powerhouse.
"We must help Greece out of the crisis she faces. But at the same time Greece must respect its commitments, that is how the European Union works," he continued.
Sources in Valls' entourage said that Chinese Premier Li Keqiang asked him whether Greece would leave the euro when the two met on Thursday.
The new Greek government is demanding a renegotiation of the 240-billion-euro ($269 billion) international bailout it was granted in 2010 to avoid a financial meltdown.
It has already begun to roll back years of austerity measures demanded by the EU and the International Monetary Fund in return for the money, and China itself has said it was "highly concerned" about a review of the privatisation of the port of Piraeus, where Chinese firm COSCO was one of the bidders.
Athens is hoping to cut the debt in half, but the European Union and Germany have warned that there is little support for such a move.

Valls tried to dispel concerns about the eurozone, citing a "strong partnership" between its two largest economies, France and Germany, and the expected impact of the ECB's quantitative easing measures.
"I know there are some concerns that relate to the situation of the eurozone or Europe, which remains a major trading partner," he said.

"Discussions are constantly taking place between China and the European Union, so come and invest in Europe, and in France in particular," he told Chinese businessmen. 

BEIJING, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS/AFP) - 

Egypt's Sisi cuts short overseas trip after Sinai attacks

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is cutting short a visit to Ethiopia for an African Union summit, returning home to deal with a wave of deadly militant attacks, his office said Friday.

At least 26 people, mostly soldiers, were killed on Thursday when militants fired rockets and set off a car bomb in North Sinai province in simultaneous assaults claimed by an affiliate of the Islamic State group. 

CAIRO, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS/AFP) - 

Journalist's daughter killed in city flat

Unidentified miscreants today strangled to death the daughter of former editor of the Daily Ittefaq Akhtarul Alam at her Rampura residence, police and hospital sources said.

Police said they recovered 47-year old Fahmida Akhter alias Bithun's body at about 2:30pm from her Mohanagar Porject apartment at Rampura while her husband Golam Robbani currently lives in Bahrain and her only son Siratim Mustakim aged about 23 stays in the United States as a US national.
Bithun's father was a former acting-editor of the Ittefaq who later served as the Bangladesh ambassador to Bahrain.
"Her body was found lying on the floor with hands and legs tied up with rope while neck was wrapped in scarf" at her fifth floor apartment, sub-inspector Rafiqul Islam of Rampur Police Station told BSS.
Doctors of Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) who carried out the autopsy said she was strangled to death and pepper power was also sprayed in her face.
Police said the process was underway to file a murder case. 

DHAKA, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS) -

Selim Osman seeks blessings for his recovery

NARAYANGANJ, JAN 30 (BSS)- A milad and doa mahfil was held at Chashara BB Road Nur Mosque here today after juma prayers seeking divine blessings for the recovery of BKMEA president and director of FBCCI AKM Selim Osman MP.

BKMEA sources said Selim OSman has been admitted to Bamrungrad Hospital at Bangkok in Thailand. He underwent a surgery in the early hours of today.
He sought blessings from the people as well as the business community of Narayanganj for his early recovery.
Former president of BKMEA Manjurul Hoque, vice-president (finance) GM Faruk, former vice-president Shamim Ahmed, Chairman of Alirtek Union Parishad Zakir Hossain, members of Narayanganj Chamber of Commerce and Industry and leading businessmen attended the doa mahfil.
The milad and doa mahfil was led by Alhaj Moulana Abdus Salam.

Dutch investors consider Bangladesh as ideal place for investment

DHAKA, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS)- A group of Dutch investors termed Bangladesh as a land of untapped potential with huge market size and said Bangladesh is slowly but surely emerging as the gateway to the South Asia given its geostrategic location with both China and India on either side of its border.

The rise of ASEAN common market makes Bangladesh even more auspicious for the potential investors to consider Bangladesh as their next investment destination, they said while speaking at an investment seminar on "Bangladesh: Opportunities and Best Practices" held at Hague, the Netherlands, on Thursday.

Bangladesh Embassy in Hague hosted the seminar in collaboration with Nyenrode University, the Netherlands.
Over 50 Dutch investors attended the seminar which was moderated by Andre Nijhof of Nyenrode. The Dutch investors who have investments in Bangladesh shared their experience with other participants, according to the information received here today.
Bangladesh Ambassador to the Netherlands Sheikh Mohammed Belal also spoke at the seminar.
Peter Van Bergen, proprietor of Budgetview and Impel IT solutions with big IT offices in Amsterdam and Dhaka and Vicenta Ariza, representative of Maruboshi Europe BV in Bangladesh shared their experience with the participants about the overall business atmosphere in Bangladesh.

Rene Beerepoot of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) made a presentation on Dutch assistance for firms to expand their business in Bangladesh.
He said there is a Dutch fund of 750 million Euro for Dutch businesses willing to expand their business in the world's 66 countries including Bangladesh. Dutch SMEs, if approved, could receive low interest loan for up to 10 to 15 million Euro for expansion of business in Bangladesh, he added.
While sharing experience, Peter Van Bergen said he found the commitment of the people of Bangladesh as highly praiseworthy and also he found the level of spoken English very satisfactory.

He said he found working in Bangladesh 'easier' compared to other countries.
Vicenta Ariza said he found 'commitment' and 'enthusiasm' of the people of Bangladesh unparallel. Expressing his plan to stay in Bangladesh at least next 10-15 years, he said despite 'strike' or 'hartal' his shippers in Bangladesh never failed to deliver.

Workers Party to observe Anti-Violence and Subversion Day on Feb 10

DHAKA, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS)- The Workers Party, an ally of the Awami League-led 14-party alliance, will observe Anti-Violence and Subversion Day across the country on February 10.
A resolution to this effect was taken at a meeting of the politburo of the Workers Party (WP) today (Friday).
WP president Rashed Khan Menon presided over the meeting in which a political report on current political situation now prevailing in the country was presented by WP general secretary Fazle Hossain Badsha.
In the report on political analysis, the WP observed that the conspiracy of Jamaat has been implemented to thwart the ongoing trial of the war criminals by killing people by torching them in the name of siege-hartal, according to a press release.
The WP laid emphasis on building people's resistance against those involved in subversive acts.
In another resolution, the WP observed that the demand for imposition of a ban on the politics of Jamaat is the demand of the hour. WP leaders Anisur Rahman Mallick, Bimal Biswas, Nurul Hasan, Mahmudul Hasan Manik, Shafiuddin Ahmed, Nur Ahmed Bakul, Iqbal Kabir Zahid, Hazera Sultana, Aminul Islam Golap and Kamrul Ahsan took part in deliberations at the meeting.

Quader urges politicians to build bridge of love & cooperation

CHITTAGONG, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS)- Road Transport and Bridges Minister
Obaidul Quader on Friday urged the politicians to build bridges of love and cooperation among themselves shunning the politics of violence.
He said politics involving conflict and clash is harmful for
both the country and democracy and called for breaking the wall
of political distance for greater welfare of the country.
"You know the people of Bangladesh love democracy. Having differences of opinion in a democratic society is the essence and beauty of democracy. That's why it's important to practise
democratic norms and values," he said.
The Minister said this while speaking as chief guest at the biennial conference of Television Journalist Association Chittagong (TJAC) held at Chittagong Press Club (CPC) auditorium
this afternoon.
The minister said the political programmes which cannot earn love from the people should be stopped and the politics of arson and anarchy should be removed for the welfare of the general
mass.
"It is a matter of sorrow that many innocent people have been killed recently in petrol bomb attacks on vehicles. It is not a democratic movement. People who are involved in the atrocities are the enemies of democracy, humanity and civilization", Quader viewed.
The minister called upon all to create awareness among people against all acts of anarchy and sabotage in the name of democratic movement. Quader also informed that construction work
of the much-awaited tunnel under the river Karnaphuli would be inaugurated by November this year.
The minister said Chinese president Shi Jinping is expected to inaugurate the construction work of the tunnel to be built at a cost of US$ 100 crore.
TJAC President Shamsul Haq Haidory presided over the function while CPC President Kalim Sarwar,

General Secretary (GS)
Mohsin Chowdhury, GS of Chittagong Union of Journalists (CUJ) Hasan Ferdous, GS of Chittagong Metropolitan Union of Journalists (CMUJ) Mohammad Shah Nowaz and TJAC GS Chowdhury Farid, among others, addressed the function.

Mosharraf inaugurates a newly constructed bridge in Faridpur

Faridpur, January 30, 2015(BSS)- Overseas Employment and
Expatriate Welfare Minister Engineer Khondoker Mosharraf Hossain
said here today that it is not possible by any power to unseat
Awami League from its present solid and consolidated position
because it has a deep root among the masses as the party is
implementing numerous development works across the country.

While inaugurating a bridge this afternoon on river Kumar which has connected the town with three unions Mosharraf said that during last six years we have implemented various projects
of infrastructural development -- projects in health sector, academic sector and social development sector. During last forty years such development did not take place in this district, he
said.
He disclosed that a project of Taka 157 crore would soon be implemented to re- excavate river Kumar to keep it navigable round the year. He also said with the establishment of administrative divisional headquarter at Faridpur soon, the setting up of an Export Processing Zone(EPZ) is under the active
consideration of the government.
Mosharraf advised BNP chief Khaleda Zia to shun the path of violence and blockade otherwise, the name of her party will go missing from the pages of Bangladesh politics.
The meeting presided over by Awami League leader Abdul Jalil Shaikh was also addressed, among others, by DC Sardar Sharafat Ali, Police Super Md. Jamil Hassan, Sadar Upazilla chairman Khondoer Mohtesham Hossain Babor and Sramik League president Akkas Ali Mia.
Three veteran BNP activists of this town Nasir Khan Dulal, Jahangir Khan Babu and Barkat Ali joined Awami League in the meeting by presenting the Minister with flower bouquets.
The bridge constructed by LGED at an estimated cost of Taka 3 crore 22 lakh having length of 75 meters and width 3.7 meter will ease the communication of few thousand Char land people setting
communication and other facilities with the district town.

French PM Valls stops short of calling China an ally

BEIJING, Jan 30, 2015 (BSS/AFP) - Visiting French Prime Minister Manuel Valls shied away at the last moment from calling China and France faithful "allies" on Friday.

The description was included in the advance text of a speech to businessmen distributed to the press.

"Yes, France and China are two great nations," it read. "Two partners pledged to work side by side. Two allies faithful to each other."

But in the event Valls engaged in some last-minute editing while delivering the address, on the second day of a trip seeking greater Chinese investment and business for his country.

"Yes, France and China are two great nations, which like to talk of their history, of their culture... of their stubborn attachment to independence," he said instead.
Beijing sees a steady stream of Western diplomatic visitors keen to express positive sentiments about their relationships -- despite concerns about human rights -- in the hope of securing a slice of the Chinese economic cake, the second-largest in the world.
Nonetheless few have ever gone as far as Valls' original text, and the phrase raised eyebrows among analysts.
"It's very strong terminology," said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a China expert at Hong Kong Baptist University. "As far as I'm aware China is not a member of NATO."
France and China are both veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council, where Beijing regularly partners with Moscow to block Western-backed resolutions.

72-hour shutdown across Bangladesh from Sunday as blockade continues

Senior Correspondent,  bdnews24.com

Published: 2015-01-30 18:13:38.0 BdST Updated: 2015-01-30 19:56:47.0 BdST

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  File Photo

The BNP-led alliance has called a 72-hour countrywide shutdown from Sunday, a day before 1.5 million students start taking SSC and equivalent examinations.

 

Related Stories 

Blockade won't end for SSC exams

• 2015-01-30 17:24:28.0

BNP's Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir announced the latest agitation in a statement on Friday, minutes after rejecting the education minister's call to lift the blockade in the interest of the test takers.
The coalition is enforcing a violent economic blockade which has claimed at least 40 lives since Jan 5.Rizvi urged the alliance supporters to 'peacefully' enforce the shutdown starting 6am on Sunday.
The 20-Party alliance says the shutdown is to protest against 'threats' to destroy BNP chief Khaleda Zia's Gulshan office and arrest her.
It has been called also to prevent against acts of sabotage 'by any means', attempts to 'kill' Khaleda's adviser Reaz Rahman, murder of 21 of activists and arrest of over '15,000', among others.
The BNP and its smaller partners sat out the 2014 general elections leading to a landslide for the Awami League and its allies.
The BNP has dubbed the government "illegal" and since been pressing for a snap election.
Rizvi said, "The 72-hour general strike will be enforced as part of the ongoing movement to restore democracy and rights to vote."

শাকিবের মুখোমুখি আহমেদ শরীফ

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বিএফডিসিতে চলছে চলচ্চিত্র শিল্পী সমিতির নির্বাচন। সভাপতি পদে শাকিবের মুখোমুখি হয়েছেন খল-অভিনেতা আহমেদ শরীফ। সাধারণ সম্পাদক পদে মিশা সওদাগরের সঙ্গে স্বতন্ত্রপ্রার্থী হিসেবে লড়ছেন অমিত হাসান। নির্বাচনে বিভিন্ন পদের জন্য লড়ছেন ওমর সানি, মৌসুমী, ববি হক, ডন,খল অভিনেত্রী রিনা খানের মতো তারকারা।

 

সকাল নয়টা থেকে শুরু হয়েছে ভোটগ্রহণ। সাত সকালেই ছেলে বাপ্পারাজকে নিয়ে ভোট দিয়ে গেছেন নায়করাজ রাজ্জাক। ভোট দিয়ে গেছেন ববিতা, চম্পা দুই বোন। ভোট দিয়েছেন আনোয়ারা, মৌসুমী, মাহিয়া মাহি, ফারুক, বাপ্পীর মতো তারকারা।ভোট দেওয়া শেষে ববিতা বলছেন, “নির্বাচনে হার জিত তো থাকবেই। যেই জিতুক, সবার কাছে আমার প্রত্যাশা থাকবে তারা যেন শিল্পীদের জন্য নতুন কিছু করেন। এফডিসির ভালোমন্দ সবকিছুর সঙ্গে আমরা থাকতে চাই সবসময়।”

শিল্পী সমিতির সাবেক সভাপতি রাজ্জাক বলছেন, “নতুনরা এখন নেতৃত্বে আসছে। তাদের কাছে প্রত্যাশা একটাই, বাংলা চলচ্চিত্রকে বাঁচিয়ে রাখতে তারা নতুন নতুন সব কার্যক্রম করবে। চলচ্চিত্রাঙ্গনকে বদলে দেবে তারা।”শিল্পী সমিতির নির্বাচনে লড়ছেন শাকিব-মিশা এবং আহমেদ শরীফ পরিষদ। শাকিব-মিশা পরিষদে রয়েছেন ওমর সানি, মৌসুমী, ববি হক, ডনের মতো তারকারা। অন্য দিকে আহমেদ শরীফ পরিষদে খল-অভিনেত্রী রিনা খান ছাড়া তারকাপ্রার্থী রাজ্জাক।

শিল্পী সমিতির এই নির্বাচনে তারকাবহুল শাকিব-মিশা পরিষদের পাশে আহমেদ শরীফ প্যানেলে তেমন কোনো তারকাই নেই। কিন্তু তাতে দমে যাননি আহমেদ শরীফ। নির্বাচনে জয়ের ব্যাপারে তিনি ‘হাল ছাড়তে’ রাজি নন।
নির্বাচনকেন্দ্রের বাইরে দ্বন্দ্বে জড়িয়ে পড়েছিলেন সাধারণ সম্পাদক পদপ্রার্থী মিশা ও স্বতন্ত্র অমিত হাসান। নির্বাচনী বিধি লঙ্ঘন করেছেন এমন অভিযোগ এনে বাকবিতণ্ডায় জড়িয়ে পড়েন দুই তারকা। তাদের থামাতে বেশ বেগে পেতে হয়েছে শাকিবকে।

নির্বাচন উপলক্ষে শাকিব, ববির মতো তারকারা দিনভরই উপস্থিত ছিলেন এফডিসিতে। নিজেদের প্যানেলের পক্ষে ভোট চাইতে বেশ তৎপর দেখা গেছে তাদের।

Sheldon Silver, Speaker of New York Assembly, Is Arrested in Corruption Case

By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM, THOMAS KAPLAN and SUSANNE CRAIGJAN. 22, 2015

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver Credit Mike Groll/Associated Press

Continue reading the main story

The powerful speaker of the New York State Assembly, Sheldon Silver, was arrested on federal corruption charges on Thursday, sending shock waves through the political establishment and upending the new legislative session.

Mr. Silver, a Democrat from the Lower East Side of Manhattan who has served as speaker for more than two decades, surrendered to Federal Bureau of Investigation agents early Thursday morning in Lower Manhattan, law enforcement officials said.

Mr. Silver, before entering 26 Federal Plaza, said, “I hope I’ll be vindicated.”

Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District, who led the investigation, is expected to provide more details about the charges at a 1 p.m. news conference.

The investigation of Mr. Silver began after Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in March abruptly shut down an anticorruption commission he had created in 2013.

The federal inquiry focused on payments that Mr. Silver received from a small law firm that specializes in seeking reductions of New York City real estate taxes.

While it is legal for lawmakers to hold outside jobs, investigators said Mr. Silver failed to list the payments from the firm, Goldberg & Iryami, on his annual financial disclosure filings with the state.

In the past, Mr. Silver has been criticized for his outside law practice, a lucrative career that supplements the $121,000 he earns as speaker.

In 2013, Mr. Silver earned at least $650,000 in legal income, including work for the personal injury law firm, Weitz & Luxenberg, according to his most recent financial disclosure filing.

But what he does to earn that income has long been a mystery in Albany, and Mr. Silver has refused to provide details about his work.

In December, The New York Times reported that federal authorities were investigating substantial payments made to Mr. Silver by Goldberg & Iryami.

Mr. Silver is not known to have any expertise in the specialized area of the law in which the firm practices, known as tax certiorari, and the nature of Mr. Silver’s work for the firm was unclear.

Tax certiorari work is done on contingency, with lawyers traditionally getting paid roughly a third of any reduction they obtain.

Goldberg & Iryami appears to have just two lawyers. It operates out of a small office at 42 Broadway in Lower Manhattan, a somewhat run-down building that also houses a number of city offices. It is led by Jay Arthur Goldberg, 75, who served on New York City’s Tax Commission during the administration of Mayor Edward I. Koch.

In recent years, Mr. Goldberg and his firm have represented hundreds of properties across New York City, from modest storefronts on Staten Island to office buildings in Midtown Manhattan, according to court filings and records from the city’s Tax Commission. He has also represented large cooperative developments on the Lower East Side, the neighborhood that makes up the heart of Mr. Silver’s political base.

After the disclosure, Mr. Silver said he had done nothing wrong but declined to comment in detail.

Continue reading the main story Continue reading the main story

Continue reading the main story

The speaker since 1994, Mr. Silver is a consummate back-room player, one of Albany’s “three men in a room,” along with the governor and Senate majority leader, who negotiate the state budget and hammer out deals on important legislation.

Continue reading the main story

LEAKED: Travel Hack for Cheap Airfare

I never really understood why, but whenever I used to try to book a domestic flight in another country, the prices were always ridiculous!

Advertisement

Last year, a quick domestic flight from Bangkok to Trang, Thailand was going to cost me almost $300.
But…
As soon as I landed in Bangkok, I booked a seat on that very same flight for under $30!
This was because of the “Point of Sale” - the physical location where the retail transaction was completed. Point of Sale can have a drastic affect on the pricing of any flight with an international component.
I’d be delusional if I claimed to have cracked the how’s and why’s of airline pricing, but it is true that some airfare is much cheaper, depending on where you are when you but it.
Or better yet: where you appear to buy it from.

‘Point of Sale’ Travel Hack

You can leverage foreign currencies and a “fake” point of sale to your advantage…
Most people have no idea that they can change where they appear to be buying a plane ticket from. That’s how I managed to swindle a flight from LAX to Rio for a meager $482 instead of $1,000+
Although this method can be used for regular international flights, it often works best when you’re buying domestic flights in another country. A Brazilian friend told me that flights to Sao Paulo were much cheaper to buy once in Rio rather than from abroad.
He also showed me how airfare for the exact same routes often varies between the U.S. and foreign versions of an airline’s website. This is often because of regional sales and promotions. However, the local currency’s exchange rate may also factor into your favor.
Anyone up for saving money?

How It Works

In order to demonstrate how this travel hack works, we planned a mock trip to Columbia.
We searched for one-way airfare from Cartagena to Bogotá for June 17. We used Google ITA, Kayak and Skyscanner to compare the two largest airlines that fly this route: Avianca and LAN Airlines.
A Kayak search showed that the cheapest flight on LAN was $116 and Avianca’s cheapest as $137. When we conducted the same search in Google ITA with New York City as the Point of Sale, we saw the exact same prices.
Skyscanner fetched the best results but at $114 on LAN and $136 on Avianca, the savings were marginal at best.
But then we changed the Point of Sale…

Where to Change the Point of Sale in Google ITA

Though Skyscanner actually had the best prices, we didn’t stop there.
You can change the Point of Sale to any place in the world you want, so we decided to change it from an American city to one in Colombia. (This is only searchable in Google ITA.)
The biggest difference you’ll see doing so, is that you’ll get the price in the local currency. Ours was in Colombian pesos, which is exactly what we wanted…
After switching the Point of Sale to a Colombian city, the  exact same Avianca flight was now roughly $61.59 and the LAN flight approximately $91.96.

Results

• We would have saved $22.04 on the LAN flight and $74.41 on the Avianca flight, simply by paying in a different currency.
• There was a $54.41 price gap between the cheapest U.S. and Colombian flights.
• We tested and proved the idea that you can save money just by comparing flights in different currencies.

Airfare price in Colombian pesos after switching the Point of Sale.

The Only Issue

Now that we could see the price difference with Google ITA, our only problem was that we had to find a place to purchase the ticket in pesos.
We cruised over to Avianca’s website and clicked on the menu in the top-right corner of the screen. We were able to set Colombia as our country and English as our language. (Note: If you’re trying on another airline’s website and English isn’t an option, most internet browsers are capable of translating the page, albeit roughly.)

Selecting a different Point of Sale on Avianca’s website.

Doing this allowed us to purchase airfare from a “fake” Point of Sale, in Colombian pesos…
…and on the cheap.

You may not always be able to get the exact fare seen in Google ITA, but you can almost always find airfare much cheaper than what Kayak will serve up.

The cheapest flight we could find in our search was 136,000 COP or $72.14, which was slightly more than what Google ITA showed us, but it was still a lot better than Kayak’s price. All in all, we managed to find a flight for roughly $43.86 cheaper than I could find on any U.S. website.

NOTE: In order to maximize your savings, be sure to use a credit card that won’t charge you a foreign transaction fee.

But don’t despair if you don’t already have a travel-friendly card, we found that, in the end, it would still be worth paying a foreign transaction fee just to be able to pay in pesos.

If we had to pay the standard 3% foreign transaction surcharge, it would have only cost an additional $2.16 for the airfare.Although each credit card issuer has different policies, the fact of the matter is that if you’re smart, you can still come out on top.

Don’t worry: I used an ‘approved’ electronic device.

So, to Sum it Up

With a little finesse, this Point of Sale method can also be used to purchase an international flight.
The best and most obvious Points of Sale to search for typically include both the destination country and the country where the airline is based in.
Theoretically, you could search every country as a Point of Sale if you’re truly committed! Well, if you do, and if you end up stumbling across something really awesome, be sure to share your story with us!
The discounts we’ve been able to find using this handy travel hack can range anywhere from a a few dollars to a few hundred dollars. This is usually done by leveraging foreign currencies against each other.
You may find that this travel hack may not work every time, but it’s time well-spent nonetheless…
…And if there’s one thing I love more than travel, it’s travel-deal hunting.