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Handwritten letters and serene sensation
Maswood Alam Khan
Like my peers, whose hearts have been throbbing for more than 50 years, I sometimes wonder when my own heart will call it a day and stop throbbing. I often fancy travelling back to my childhood to review what all my life has been like. Poignant moments reminiscing about the past nowadays recur quite frequently, and even more so now as I have become a gentleman at leisure and splurge my time on hobbies like listening to music, window-shopping at malls and flirting with the idea of becoming a writer. No more is my time and space cluttered by the hustle and bustle of busy life. Among my golden boyhood memories there are a few amusing anecdotes which of late are repeatedly coming back vividly to my senses, with all hues replete with their original fragrances and excitements.
Three of my dearest objects that are permanently blended with my childhood memories are one red fountain pen my father bought me when I was a high school student, one empty HMV phonograph needle box with a hinged lid that bore that famous picture of the dog raptly listening to what I could only suppose was his master's voice coming from a gramophone, and one metal nutcracker. Among the three artifacts, I am still retaining the nutcracker that I have inherited from my father. But my fat red pen and the little needle box are lost for ever. I would have paid any amount of money if someone could somehow hand me back my two boyhood gifts: the red pen filled with royal blue ink of the 'Parker-Quickink' brand and the tiny tin-box with the dog on the lid.
Among many things and habits, which are fast vanishing from our life in the whirlpool of modernity with computers and keyboards whirring and clicking, billions of cell phones buzzing with text messages and the nerds gabbling in net chatting, is the cool sight of a fountain pen beside a bottle of ink placed on a writing desk and the tradition of penning an elegant and polite letter in softie handwriting. Nothing can express one's admiration for another like a handwritten letter. No love e-mail, text message or cell phone call will ever be as fondly and carefully bundled into a memory box as priceless treasures and savored for years to come.
Serene sensation
I feel pity for the boys and girls who are now deprived of the heavenly pleasure of writing by hand, that we used to enjoy in our salad days. Handwriting a letter with a fountain pen is a serene sensation that slows the soul and gnaws the mind into a contemplative state when thoughts reflected and words chosen seamlessly convey the truest nuances of emotion. That conveyance is not at all possible for a mechanical keyboard that vomits the desiccated words on a monitor that glares with punishing lights.
My son is way taller than me and extremely busy working in North America. He cannot afford time even to talk to me over telephone and I have to leave recorded voice messages in his answering machine. Hardly have I received his words either in texts in my cell phone or in emails in my laptop during the last few months. Still with some trepidation, I have dared handwrite a letter to my son with a footnote: "Handwrite me a letter, please, Raakeeb", carefully folded it, inserted it in an envelope, glued the envelope, stamped it and posted it at the GPO for its long travel to Toronto as what is now called a snail-mail in this age of e-mails.
maswood@hotmail.com
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Minister blames unscrupulous traders
Holiday Report
Failing to contain the price hike of daily essentials, Commerce Minister Faruk Khan, a retired military colonel finally decided keep silent on the issue. The market monitoring mechanism by the government and the Federation of businessmen, FBCCI, also failed to bring the situation under control.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Food Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque squarely blamed a section of traders for increasing market prices of rice.
"The traders always increase the rice prices through machinations. They are still trying to do so," he told reporters
Asked about identification of those traders who are involved in machinations and any action against them, he said: "I don't want to raise any dispute commenting on this matter."
About the government's target of three-lakh-ton Aman procurement by February, the minister hinted that they could not achieve the target due to high prices in the local market compared to the price fixed by the government.
"About 30,000 tonnes of Aman rice could be procured as the market price is higher than the price set by the government," he said.
Razzaque said the government has more than enough stock of rice and wheat for the period till boro harvest. "So, people should not worry about the procurement."
The government on December 7 last year initiated a move to procure up to three lakh tonnes of Aman rice at Tk 22 a kilogram within February 28.
The minister informed that about eight lakh tonnes of rice remained in government stock to meet any exigencies.
Meanwhile, coarse rice sells at Tk 26-28 per kg while medium and fine-quality rice sells between Tk 36 and Tk 45 on the retail market in the capital.
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Turkish president visits city school
Special Correspondent
Turkish President Abdullah Gul accompanied and his wife during their last week's visit to Dhaka attended a reception accorded in his honour by the International Turkish Hope School at Uttara in Dhaka city.
Principal of the school, Bayram Saatci welcomed the guest at the institution while Turkish and Bangladeshi students sang the national anthems of both the countries as Turkish President arrived at the school on Sunday afternoon. The school authorities also presented the activities and the achievements of the educational institute that was established with Turkish assistance in 1996.
Addressing the students and guests present on the occasion Turkish President emphasised that the school, a symbol of friendship, brotherhood and cooperation would contribute further in strengthening the bondage between the two nations.
Turkish President and his visited the KG section of the school and had chat with the kids who welcomed the guests by waving flags of Turkey and Bangladesh.
Singng the visitors book , the President wrote that the school was playing a role as a bridge between the two countries. The school has been serving in a way of carrying the Turkish language and culture to host country, Bangladesh.
Turkish President was accompanied by Turkish Health Minister Prof. Dr Recep Akdag and his spouse. Turkish Transport Minister Binali Yildirim and his spouse, Turkish State Minister Prof. Dr Mehmet Aydin and his spouse, Bangladesh Commerce Minister Col (rtd) Faruq Khan, Dr Alauddin Ahmed, Advisor to Prime Minister of Bangladesh and Turkish Ambassador to Bangladesh Sakir Ozman Torunlar.
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AL alliance launch campaign
to ban Jamaat
Holiday Report
Ruling Awami League-led 14-party alliance and its different associated organisations are planning to launch a massive campaign demanding a ban on religion-based politics in the country.
Dhaka City unit 14-party will hold a series of meetings in all 15 constituencies in the capital soon to create public awareness, especially against the theocratic politics of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and allied student organisation Islami Chhatra Shibir.
AL leaders will also soon start their own countrywide tours where they will formally demand banning of religion-based politics, said party insiders.
Awami Jubo League, youth front of AL, at its central executive committee meeting yesterday demanded that the government bans the politics of Jamaat-Shibir, and take stern actions against the killers of a Rajshahi University unit Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activist.
Claiming that BNP, Jamaat, and Shibir have plans to destabilise the country, the meeting decided to launch a series of countrywide protest programmes which will be launched in the capital on February 23 to continue till March 3. On February 24 and March 1, Jubo League will hold protest programmes in all upazilas and districts. The series will end in the capital as well.
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