www.Jasimuddin.org

Ansaruddin High School, Ambikapur, Faridpur:
Founded by Poet Jasim Uddin


Founding President: Kabi Jasim Uddin
Present President: Dr. Taufik Elahi Choudhury, Bir Bikram

Google map- Ambikapur-Faridpur

Poets father Ansaruddin students of ansauddin high school Present Ansaruddin High School, Jasimuddin Computer Center
















anser uddin oil paint by wakilur rahman

O babu, many salams to you
.........................
My home is the Padma river
We cook on one bank,
We eat at another
We have no homes,
The whole world is our home,
All men are our brothers
We look for them
In every door….."
(Jasim Uddin)

  • Babu Salam Barebar
  • Folk Song Sung by Jasim Uddin, Libary of Congrss, Washington DC 1958

  • The fishes find the deep sea,
    The birds the branches of the tree.
    The Mother knows her love for her son
    By the sharp pain in her heart alone
    Many and diverse the colour of the cows,
    But white the colour that all milk shows.
    Through all the world, a Mother's name
    A Mother's song is found the same

    Jasim Uddin

  • Collected by Jasim Uddin: Amorkantho - Recitation by Poet Jasim Uddin

  • 1. INTRODUCTION
  • 2. Ambikapur - Villages in Padma Chars (islands)- hunger, unalphabet
       - endless distress
  • 3. Mutiny : Farmer agitations
  • 4. Lesson from Liberation War: Never to Forget
  • 5. Poet Nazrul Islam - Ansaruddin's loving Guest
  • 6. Ansaruddin - Educationist, Social worker and fought for Indian Independence
  • 7. Ansaruddin became a School Teacher instead of joining lucrative Police Service
  • 8.Kabi Jasim Uddin Computer Center
  • 9.Mukti Filter by Prof. Meer Hossain January 2010
  • 10.Sport and Education Trip 2010

  • Video educational film on Arsenic Mitigation with students of Ansaruddin High School

  • Jasimuddin - Poet of the people of Bengal- Filmed at Ambikapur Village-
    A film by Khan Ata 1978
  • 1. INTRODUCTION

    google image Jasim Uddin in 1968 spent all his savings to establish Ansaruddin High School in 1969 in name of his father. Now most of people of Ambikapur and adjacent villages are educated. Ansaruddin High School at Ambikapur, Faridpur established by Poet Jasim Uddin. has opened e-mail account: anseruddin@gmail.com

    Faridpur hosted several key meetings of the Indian independecne movement. It was regularly visited by Subhash Chandra Bose, Chittaranjan Das, Rabindranath Tagore, and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. The annual conference of the Bengal Congress held on the grounds of the Moyez Manzil Palace in Faridpur in 1921 was attended by Mahatma Gandhi.

    The beauty of low-lying areas like Faridpur, and for that matter in most of Bangladesh (not so much in West Bengal) is in full blossom only in monsoon because rain water connects the dots criss-crossing the distance with little canals, ponds, and open water bodies (beels). During monsoon, the country boats became ubiquitous, ferrying people and goods. In Faridpur town, of course, there was no country boat, most people walked on road, and lanes.



    Dr. Nilratan Sarkar was the greatest Indian doctor at that time. He treated poets father (Jasimuddin Sangraha, Deys Publisher,Kolkata, India 2012).LEFT

    a rare letter from poets father anser uddin

    History

    In 1582 in the reign of Emperor Akbar, the province of Bengal was formed into 33 sarkars or financial sub-divisions, and Faridpur area appears to have been included with in the sarkar of Muhammad Abud. During the Emperor Shah Jahan, these divisions were carried onto such an extent as to cause in a falling of the imperial revenue. In 1721 a new partition of the country was made the province of Bengal being formed into 13 large divisions (chaklas) instead of sarkars. In 1765 the financial administration of Faridpur, together with the rest of Bangal was captured by the English, and in 1790 the criminal administration of the country at the correctors were invested with magisterial powers. In 1793 the collectors were relieved of their magisterial duties and separate officers were appointed united Judicial and Magisterial power together. The greater portion of Faridpur was then comprised within Dacca Jalalpur. In 1811 Faridpur was separated from Dacca collectorate.

    The district was initially known as Fatehabad. In 1860 the district was named as Faridpur after 12th Century Sufi saint Shah Sheikh Fariduddin. Faridpur town was declared a municipality in 1862 and a District Prison was set up in 1865. In 1840 the Faridpur Zila School was established and is one of the oldest schools in modern day Bangladesh.

    The original district stretched out across central Bengal, comprising what is, today, the Greater Faridpur region. A politically important district during the British Raj, Faridpur became a sub-division of Dhaka Division after the creation of Pakistan. In 1984, with the Decentralization Program of the Bangladesh government, Faridpur district was broken into five separate districts: Rajbari, Gopalgonj, Madaripur, Shariatpur and Faridpur.

    Faridpur is notable for its rich zamindari history. Most of the zamindar families were Hindus. They included the Basu Roys of Gopalgonj, the Basu Roy Chowdhurys of Ulpur (Shahapur), the Sikdars of Kanaipur, The Bhawal Rajas of Pangsha, the Senguptas(dewanji)of dhamaron , the Lords of Choddo, and the Baish and Roshi estates of Bhanga. During the reign of the Nawabs of Bengal, several Muslim zamindaris were established. They included the Chanpur Estate and the Boalmari Estate in present day Faridpur, Golam Ali Chowdhury of Idilpur pargana and the Padamdi Nawab Estate in present day Rajbari. The most powerful Muslim landlords were Nawab Abdul Latif and Chowdhury Moyezuddin Biwshash.

    This school has now achieved the best result among all non-goverment schools, Three years ago its result was the worst. Very high pass rates in PSC, SSC, HSC exams do not mean proper education Generally people here use the word ‘copy’ and its derivatives to mean the dishonest practice of adopting unfair means in academic examinations; the correct word is to cheat. The Dr. Kudrat-e-Khuda Education Commission Report of 1974 stated that “recently held examinations witnessed widespread cheating” and that “cheating has turned the examination into a farce.” The 1988 Report of the National Education Commission also commented that the continuing slide in the condition of examinations took a bad shape. A survey conducted by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) states that the main challenge for the secondary education is posed by “prevalent cheating in the Board-conducted examinations, leaking of question papers and such other rampant corruptions.”

    However, some examiners and officials of the Directorate of Primary Education said examiners had been instructed to mark scripts generously. It has been reported that examiners/teachers were asked to give pass marks to even those who failed to secure pass marks. This bad practice is sure to cause great harm to the very backbone of education. (Mawdua Hasnin, Holiday 18.07. 14)
    For contact, information or donation (for books for example) write to Headmaster Ansaruddin High School. Please send this message to your friends.




















    Zainul Abedin



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    The rivers Padma, Kumar, Modhumoti, Aarial Kha, and Chandana have made the land of Faridpur fertile. The fertile land not only produces good crops, but also great personalities. When Bangladesh, in 1971, was going to be independent, it was internationally renowned as the country of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He was born in Tungipara in the then Faridpur district (now Faridpur has divided into five districts, i.e. Faridpur, Madaripur, Gopalgong, Shariatpur, and Rajbari ). Tungipara is now in the Gopalgong district. Mujib's graveyard is also in Tungipara.

    Jasim Uddin is called Pollikobi (poet of rural life). In his poems he has picked up the villagers' real life. His poems have been translated in many languages. His graveyard is in Ambikapur, which is adjacent to Faridpur town.

    Nawab Abdul Latif was a great social reformer, administrator, and educationist. He was born in the village Rajapur in Boalmari upazila. It is about 40km from Faridpur. The broken bricks of buildings announce his memory in Rajapur. Scientist Kazi Abul Monsur, poet and educationist Gazi Khorsheduzzaman, photographer Dr. Shahidul Alam, and footballer Salahuddin were also born in Rajapur.

    Social reformer Haji Shariatullah was born in Bahadurpur, now in the Madaripur district. World-famous architect Fazlur Rahman Khan (F.R. Khan), who was the designer of the Empire State Building in Chicago and the King Abdul Aziz Airport in Zeddah, is the son of this soil. Politician Yusuf Ali Chowdury (also known as Mohan Miah and Alimuzzaman Chowdury); artists Rashid Chowdury and Kalidas Karmaker, and social worker Ambikacharon Majumder were also born in Faridpur.

    Faridpur is a historic district in central Bangladesh. It is a part of the Dhaka Division. The district was a focal point for political movements in the British Raj and the early days of the Pakistan era. It produced some of the most prominent politicians and cultural figures of Bengal. Once a subdivision, the original area of the district compromised of what is today the Greater Faridpur region which includes the present day districts of Rajbari, Gopalgonj, Madaripur, Shariatpur and Faridpur. Famous for its jute fields, which are considered to produce the finest raw jute, and aristocratic zamindar families, Faridpur is located on the banks of the Padma river (Lower Ganges). However, the district is also prone to heavy flooding.

    History:

    The classless mystic philosophy of Islam, introduced in Benga1 by Muslim Sufis and saints, brought a new message of hope in terms of human dignity and honour for the Buddhists, monotheistic school of Hinduism, and the lower caste Hindu untouchables. The popular acceptance and universal veneration of Muslim saints and savants were a significant tribute by the local population, of all persuasions of faiths, about the non-military and non-political nature of introduction of Islam in Bengal.

    In a historical context the evolution of the awareness of the Bengali Muslims of their distinct and different identity and aspirations went through identifiable phases. The first phase lasted from about the 8th century to 1204 i.e. Muslim conquest of Bengal. The second phase 1204-1757 ended with the loss of Muslim political power in Bengal to the East India Company in the battle of Plassey in 1757.

    The loss of the political power in 1757 to the British signalled the loss of will and ability of the Muslims of Bengal to protect their separate identity and to shape their destiny.

    A noteworthy feature during the nineteenth century was the lack of proper leadership in Muslim Bengal. Muslim leadership was socially fragmented, politically biased and without any meaningful communication between the leaders and the masses.

    In the nineteenth century the illiterate and poor Muslims, the peasants and artisans, had no one to turn to for advice and guidance except towards reformers like Haji Shariatullah, Pir Dudu Mia or Titumir who were totally ignorant of the new ideas and forces that were going to shape the destiny of all communities.

    The district was initially known as Fatehabad. In 1860 the district was named as Faridpur after 12th Century Sufi saint Shah Sheikh Fariduddin. Faridpur town was declared a municipality in 1862 and a District Prison was set up in 1865. In 1840 the Faridpur Zila School was established and is one of the oldest schoos in modern day Bangladesh. The original district stretched out across central Bengal and compromised of the what is today, the Greater Faridpur region. A politcally important district during the British Raj, Faridpur became a sub-division of Dhaka Division after the creation of Pakistan. In 1984, with the Decentralisation Programme of the Bangladesh government, Faridpur district was broken into five districts- Rajbari, Gopalgonj, Madaripur, Shariatpur and Faridpur.

    Faridpur is notable for its rich zamindari history. Most of the zamindar families were Hindus. They included the Basu Roys of Gopalgonj, the Sikdars of Kanaipur, The Bhawal Rajas of Pangsha, the Lords of Choddo and the Baish and Roshi estates of Bhanga. During the reign of the Nawabs of Bengal, several Muslim zamindaris were established. They included the Padamdi Nawab Estate, the Boalmari Nawab Estate and the Chanpur Biwshash Estate. The most powerful Muslim landlords were the Nawab of Boalmari and Chowdhury Moyezuddin Biwshash.

    During the 1800s, Haji Shariatullah, after returning from Mecca, began the famous Faraizi movement aimed at ending the persecution of Muslims by upper caste Hindu zamindars. The Indigo Resistance Movement which resisted Indigo plantations promoted by the British East India Company, also began in Faridpur. The movement was led by Pir Dudu Miah.

    His reform movement was basically religious; but it touched upon various other aspects of the society. He may be characterised as an Islamic revivalist, a social reformer and a populist peasant leader. These traits were symptomatic of the devastating malaise which had taken hold of the people of Bengal who were then smarting under the unhampered misrule, loot and plunder of the English

    The indigo resestance movement and santal rebellion of the late 1850s were organised and led by the affected people themselves. Many of the Calcutta newspapers and magazines had rendered support to the cause of the rebellious peasantry. The Faraizi peasant resistance was organised by the peasants themselves. dudu miah, the leader of the movement, was a religious leader but his leadership was not of the genre of Majnu Shah, Balaki Shah, Tipu Shah and others. Dudu Miah used religious fervour to strengthen his secular fight against the oppressive zamindars.

    Dudu Miyan (1819-1862) succeeded to the leadership of the faraizi movement at the death of his father, Haji shariatullah, in 1840. Born in 1819 in a village of Madaripur of greater Faridpur district, Dudu Mia's real name was Muhsinuddin Ahmad, 'Dudu Miyan' being his 'fond name'

    To confront the opponents of the Faraizis effectively, he revived the traditional self-governing organisation of panchayet system for minimising discord in the countryside, to check and control local disputes by good-will compromises and arbitration.

    In organising the Faraizi society, Dudu Miyan had two objectives in view, viz. (i) protecting the Faraizi peasantry from the oppression of the zamindars and European indigo planters, and (ii) securing social justice for the masses. In order to secure the first objective, he raised a volunteer corps of clubmen (lathial) and arranged for their regular training in the art of fighting with clubs. For securing the second objective, he revived the traditional system of local government (Panchayet) under Faraizi leadership. The former came to be known as the Siyasti or political branch and the latter Dini or religious branch, which were amalgamated later on into a hierarchical Khilafat system.

    For systematic and successful operation of the panchayet, he took several measures. He organised a corps of Lathiyals (affray fighters), with whose help he broke the power of the mercenary and hired clubmen of the zamindars and Indigo Planters so completely that for the two decades from 1838 to 1857 peace and tranquility prevailed all over the Faraizi areas. Besides, he organised the Faraizi hamlets, enclaves and settlements (of say 50 to 500 persons) into core-associations by appointing a gram khalifah (village representative) from amongst them as a coordinator between him and the villagers. A good number of villages, again, were grouped into a gird (circle) over which was appointed a superintendent khalifah. The village khalifahs formed a council headed by the superintendent khalifah and decided various disputes through arbitration courts. He set up his headquarters at Bahadurpur and kept around him a number of uparistha (superior) khalifahs to advise him on important issues raised by circumstances or referred to by the superintended khalifahs for final settlement.

    With these tentacles, he maintained his symbolic presence everywhere in the Faraizi societies and developed an effective system of private administration in the rural areas, which had still remained out of the reach of the company administration. So long the Indigo Planters were the autocratic lords and the zamindars, with their long ropes of permanent settlement, were the hands of the government.

    Following the socio-economic policy of his father, Dudu Miyan declared equality and brotherhood of mankind and propounded the doctrine of the proprietorship of land as due to the labour. He declared that 'the land belongs to the tiller'. This attracted the attention of all denominations of down trodden peasantry and irrespective of religion and caste all peasantry flocked around him as the supporters of the Faraizi movement. With the help of his core-khilafat organisation, he minimised the quarrels of the people in the rural society, arbitrated their disputes, summoned and tried the culprits in khilafat courts and enforced the judgments effectively. He even conventionally enforced a verbal injunction against referring any case of the dispute to the government courts without the permission of the Faraizi Khalifahs on duress of ensuring non-availability of witness for or against the case.

    Dudu Miyan was, however, prudent enough to recognise the political power of the east india company. He frequently associated himself with the English officers, hunted wild buffaloes with them and kept them in good humour. He recognised the legal revenues of land as due to the zamindars as displayed in the rent-roll list of the khas mahal. Following the wisdom of his father, he kept his activities strictly within the legal limits of the lawful subjects of the government, lest the Faraizis should have to meet the fate of the followers of titu mir, whom he met in 1830, one year before the latter was destroyed by a military expedition of the company government.

    After the break up of the sepoy revolt in 1857, the government arrested him and kept him under detention at the Alipore Jail near Calcutta till he was set free in 1861. He died at Dhaka in 1862.


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    The Greater Faridpur region is also famous for producing some of the finest politicians and cultzral leaders of the Indian Subcontinent. They include Baba Ambika Charan Majumder (President of the Indian National Congress), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (Father of the Nation), Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, Jasim Uddin, Geeta Dutta and many more.

    Faridpur hosted several key meetings of the Indian independecne movement. It was regularly visited by Subhash Chandra Bose, Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, Rabindranath Tagore, Nazrul Islam Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. The annual conference of the Bengal Congress held on the grounds of the Moyez Manzil Palace in Faridpur in 1921 was attended by Mahatma Gandhi. Faridpur also saw many ruthless atrocities during the Bangladesh Liberation War. On April 26th, the Pakistan army landed on Daulatdia river port (now in present day Rajbari) and began a massacre as soldiers went from village to village killing sleeping civilians during dawn.

    Poet Jasim Uddin's ancestral home is at village Ambikapur,(two kilometer from Faidpur town). A museum has been opened since June 2003.

    Many memorable personalities were born in the Faridpur district, like poet Jasim Uddin, social reformers Nawab Abdul Latif and Haji Shariatullah, national leaders Sheikh Mujib and Mohon Mia, singers Sanjida Khatun and Fakir Alamgir, cinematographers Mrinal Sen and Tareq Masud, artists Kalidas Karmaker and Rashid Chowdury, educationist Kazi Motahar Hossain, and many more.

    Nineteenth century Bengal was a unique blend of religious and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic orators and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance, and marked the transition from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'

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    2. Ambikapur - Villages in Padma Chars (island)- hunger, unalphabet - endless distress

    Distress of Bengal

    The ghastly genocide, which used hunger and starvation as tools, lasted for about eighteen decades and was carried out in Bengal, India (at present Bengal is partly in India and partly in Bangladesh) by the British colonial masters claiming about thirty million victims.

    It started in 1770 with a big bang, when approximately one third of the total population of Bengal died because of a drought. About 10 million people died! East India Company, which had occupied the country five years earlier, did not even once attempt to introduce any measures of aid worth mentioning. British officers in India were happily reporting to their bosses in London about having maximized their profit through trading and export of food. (Incidentally, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, the prophet of Indian nationalism, wrote his celebrated novel "Anandamath" with the battle cry 'Bandemataram' in the context of the agony evoked by the ravages of the famine of 1770.)

    zainul abedinIt must be mentioned here that Bengal is a land of rivers and most fertile land of Ganges delta. Bengal was a granary of India till British came in. Every village had, and still has, a pond, which has fishes that can feed the village even when there is no rice. It needed British intervention to convert the lush green land of Bengal into famine-starved land. A sketch by Zainul Abedin depicting Bengal Famine 1943 Bengal had 30 or 40 famines (depending on how one defines famine) during 182 years of British rule in Bengal. There are no reliable accounts of the number of people who died in these famines. We have only the figures put out by British colonialists. But even given the limited data availability, once can see the barbaric face of British colonialism in India.

    The last big famine in Bengal occurred between 1942 and 1945. At least four million people died during these three years. Some scholars believe that the number of dead was much higher (remember that the figure of four million is based on British sources). Notwithstanding the controversy about the number of dead, it is widely accepted that the famine was man-made. Nobel laureate, Amartya Sen, has demonstrated quite convincingly that the famine deaths were caused by British policies and not by drastic slump in food production.



    zainul abedinAmartya Sen has used the Bengal famine to justify democracy and run down dictatorships. The fact is that Churchill was democratically elected by British people. After independence, from 1947 till date, East Bengal (presently known as Bangladesh) has been ruled by dictators for many years. Yet, during the past five and a half decades, the number of starvation deaths in East Bengal (or West Bengal) is not even one per cent of the number of people that died of starvation during the half-century before independence. The issue, obviously, is not dictatorship versus democracy.

    Bengal was a victim of a criminal act perpetrated for more than one and three quarters of a century. British establishment indulged in brutal genocide in Bengal, at times to further their own interests and at other times out of sheer negligence of their duties. In either case, the British Government stands guilty of the worst crime in recent human history.

    The least that people of India and Bangladesh can do is to construct a memorial in the memory of millions who died at the hand of a cruel barbaric monster. Let us at least shed a tear for them! Let us at least rewrite the history! (Anil Chawla, 4 April 2005)

    We are also told that the rulers of Bengal, before the British arrived, were self-centered despots, who did not care about their people's well being and were spoilt by luxury. British take pride in the fact that they brought 'good governance' and 'rule of law' to India, starting from Bengal and spreading to the rest of the country. In spite of all the alleged misrule that the Indian rulers of pre-British era indulged in, there is absolutely no historical account of any major famine in Bengal prior to the arrival of British in Bengal.

    islands-padma riverBefore the advent of East India Company rule, the peasantry of Bengal were said to have “wielded the plough in one land and spindle on the other,” which led Bengal to the height of prosperity due to rich agricultural output and huge production of hand-woven cloths of innumerable varieties.

    Having occupied Subah (i.e. the province) Bangala, which included all of Bengal (pre–1906), Bihar and Orissa, following the Battles of Plassey and Buxar in 1757 and 1764, and having the grant of the Dewani of Subah Bangala with the legal status of Revenue Collector to the British East India Company by the Emperor of Delhi in 1765, the Company took five major steps, all leading to surreptitious subjugation of the people and “unlawful” exploitation of the land.

  • The first step was disbandment of the Nawabi armed forces, making a large number of local people unemployed.
  • The second step was the drainage of wealth from Bengal to England by loot and vandalism to balance the Company’s budget.
  • The third step was aimed at wiping out the weaving industry of Bengal, including the world-famous Muslin, turning the whole country into a market for Manchester textiles.
  • The fourth step was confiscation of the innumerable rent-free land by the Muslim rulers for running numerous religious, educational and social welfare institutions and establishments were also affected.
  • The fifth step was the feudalisation of the agricultural land and confiscation of peasants’ rights on land by means of the Permanent Settlement, and by introducing exploitative forced cultivation of indigo to facilitate capital investment of English financiers.

  • 1863The Neel (indigo)agitation of Bengal in 1859-60 is one of the largest farmer agitation of the modern times. European farmers had a monopoly over Neel farming. The foreigners used to force Indian farmers to harvest Neel and to achieve their means they used to brutally suppress the farmer. They were illegally beaten up, detained in order to force them to sell Neel at non-profitable rates. In 1866-68 Darbhanga and Champaran in Bihar witnessed agitation by Neel farmers.

    The East India Company, an important corporation at the time (starting in the 15th century), exported to England, its home base, more indigo than any other product from India.

    Till the second half of the 18th century, Bengal did not play a major role in the indigo tale. It was only subsequently that the East India Company "promoted" the cultivation and processing of indigo in Bengal and Bihar. In the 19th century, Bengal was the world's biggest producer of indigo in the world! An Englishman in the Bengal Civil Service is said to have commented, "Not a chest of indigo reached England without being stained with human blood". Indigo was part of the national movement. Champaran in Bihar witnessed indigo riots in 1868. In 1917 Gandhiji himself launched an enquiry into the exploitation of indigo workers. >British policy: Divide and Rule

    British imperialism and its atrocious policies of Divide and Rule unleashed a vicious history of divergence, asymmetry and animosity in the Bengali society. The political ways of Hindus and Muslims parted forever. Economic and cultural antagonism and conflict continued to aggravate during two centuries of British colonialism. Muslims and Hindus increasingly found it difficult to perceive a common destiny. The Muslims of Bengal, of all economic and social classes, came closer and closer on a common platform of general consensus about their fear for survival as a political, religious, economic and cultural entity.

    Bengal unlike the rest of India had experienced a half-century of British rule before it had spread over the other regions. As a result it came under significant British influence and produced a new English educated class that brought about radical changes in Indian society and customs. During the beginning of the nineteenth century the group that spearheaded this cultural movement to be known in history as the 'Bengal Renaissance' were the Hindus.

    The Bengali Muslims did not find any reflection of their aspirations in this Renaissance. Western education was the principal force behind the Bengal Renaissance. As the Muslims did not accept Western education they lagged behind in all economic and political activities as a community.

    The upper class Muslims could have taken advantage of Western education but did not. Having been the ruling class they hated the new order that had robbed them of their power and position; frustrated and hurt, therefore, they created a cocoon of exclusiveness around them. One way to maintain this exclusiveness was to cling to the traditional system of education. Moreover, Indian nationalism at this initial stage as Jawaharlal Nehru himself stated, was dominated by Hindus and had a Hinduised look, so a conflict arose in the Muslim mind. Many accepted that nationalism, trying to influence it in the direction of their choice, while many stayed away as they saw it as an articulation of Hindu aspiration.

    The first Hindu-Muslim national uprising in 1857 against the British gave a deathblow to the Muslims of Bengal. The British blamed the Muslims for it and took a series of measures to cripple them. One immediate action was the deliberate elimination of Bengalis and central Indians from the defence forces and induction of the loyalist Punjabis in their place.

    The Permanent Settlement Act - land revenue

    The establishment of both private property rights in land by the Permanent Settlement Act and the forces commercialisation of agriculture benefitted rich peasents (Jotdars). Mukherjee (1971) argued that the 'self-sufficient village economy' of Pre-British Bengal, which was based on 'peasent production', 'disintregrated' and was improverished by colonial intervention.

    The British found land revenue as the primary source of income in India and they increased it at regular intervals. The question which had bothered them in the beginning was from whom to collect the revenue. This was to be settled with the persons who were to be regarded as the owners of land, for in England the owner paid the revenue. In India, however, the revenue was paid by zamindars and all sorts of middlemen who were well-established in the country-side, but were not owners of the land. The British recognized these revenue payers as the owners of land and left the cultivators to their tender mercies. The British felt it handy to collect revenue from a limited number of landlords rather than from innumerable cultivators, merely for the convenience of extorting the maximum amount with the minimum expenditure.

    Moreover, the creation of Zamindari system was to provide a social base for the colonial power in strengthening its hold over the country.The Permanent Settlement of 1793 converted the revenue collectors into landowners in Bengal.

    The zamindars had thus been selected as the persons to settle with “not as a matter of chance, but as one of deliberate policy.” ----Baden Powell, The Land System of British India. As the British dominions in India expanded, the British extended individual ownership of land as a means to retain their hold on the growing dominions.

    zainul abedinThe imperial, political and economic considerations played their part in the determination of British policies in the annexed areas. The Permanent Settlement, with all its merits, contained one handicap in as much as it kept the company’s income static. So new experiments were taken up in the revenue policy such as Ryotwari system in Madras and Bombay, temporary zamindari settlements in the Punjab, and central provinces,etc. A s a resul of British land policy the land-holdings changed hands from cultivating owners to non-cultivating owners.Traders and mahajans invested money in lands and soon the abuses of absentee landlordism came into existence.

    The Pemanent Settlement imposed in Bengal in 1793 to collect revenue and to ensure the supply of raw materials or to facilate the flow of agricultural products for British industries. In 1770 a terrible famine resulted in bengal that took ten million Bengali lives, one third of the population (Dufferin, 1888)

    Pemanent Settlement fundamentally altered agrarian Bengal from traditional self-contained, motionless, egalitarian society to one with a dynamic peasantry - new class of landlords.



    Till the second half of the 18th century, Bengal did not play a major role in the indigo tale. It was only subsequently that the East India Company "promoted" the cultivation and processing of indigo in Bengal and Bihar. In the 19th century, Bengal was the world's biggest producer of indigo in the world! An Englishman in the Bengal Civil Service is said to have commented, "Not a chest of indigo reached England without being stained with human blood". Indigo was part of the national movement. Champaran in Bihar witnessed indigo riots in 1868. In 1917 Gandhiji himself launched an enquiry into the exploitation of indigo workers.

    As the demand for indigo rose in the textile industry and sowed indigo in its place. However, those who performed the planters refused to pay the full amount stipulated in the contracts (Kling, 1966).

    O Bajan Chal Jai

    0 father come let us go
    To the field to plough,
    Place the ploughs on oxen shoulders
    and Push, push, push.

    We who bring out food
    From the depth of earth,
    We who provide food for the whole world
    Why can't we eat can any one tell us ?

    My wife has hanged herself
    She could no longer bear hunger,
    Now I plough deep into soil
    In hope of seeing her again.

    We plough the fields
    Our bosom is also flayed
    But from the fields we get harvest
    None from the scarred bosom.
    We shall plough no more the earth for rice
    But to see how far it is to the graves.
    Jasim Uddin (A popular folk song in Bengal-
    HMV record. Kolkata)

    Obajan Chal-jai.Mathe Langol Bayte

    'East is East and West is West, and never shall the twain meet'- imperial arrogance

    colonial sport "We westerners will decide who is a good native or a bad, because all natives have sufficient existence by virtue of our recognition. We created them, we taught them to speak and think and when they rebel, they simply confirm our views of them as silly children, duped by some of their western masters.'


    This imperialistic arrogance generated nothing but anger and hatred, attitudes ultimately reflected in powerful and expressive indigenous works of art.



    Soon after winning political power, the East India Company raised a new slogan that said: “the land belongs to God, the kingdom of Delhi Badshah (the emperor) and the Sarkar (government) to the Company Bahadur.” Titu Mir’s active campaign in the districts of 24 Parganas, Barasat, Nadia and elsewhere of what is today West Bengal, was an agitational strife of the oppressed peasantry against the zaminders and indigo planters.

    The nation owes much to career politicians. Politics is all about government through the organs and agencies of which politicians voted to power should serve the electorate of a populace. In what is now Bangladesh, leaders like Haji Shariatullah and Dudu Mia launched anti-British movement. Khilafat Movement was another political campaign Fired with the zeal to free the motherland from foreign yoke the politicians of the day vowed to make supreme sacrifices over a century ago (Holiday, Editorial, June 6, 2008).

    At about the same time an Islamic reform movement – Fara’idi or Faraizi movement – was started by Haji Shariatullah in the greater district of Faridpur in 1818. It spread widely in Dhaka, Comilla, Barisal and other neighbouring districts. His son and successor Muhsinuddin Ahmad alias Dudu Miah gave it the shape of an agitational movement of the peasantry in a mortal confrontation with the zaminders and indigo planters. In its religious fervour, Titu Mir’s peasants’ movement was identical with that of the Fara’idi movement. By the middle of 1830 the local British administrators started to take the side of the landlords and planters.

    Puthis were also composed on islamic personalities such as Haji shariatullah and historic events like the Wahabi-Faraezi movement (Wakil Ahmed).

    The condition of the Muslim community of rural Bengal- five years of British rule (1765-1840) by W. W. Hunter

    W. W. Hunter contended that seventy-five years before, it was almost impossible to find any poor family amongst the Muslims of Bengal, and now it was difficult to find any well-to-do family amongst them. He said the Muslims accused the English on several grounds for their abject misfortune, among which the confiscation of rent-free land grants and the abolition of the network of the posts of Qadis were reckoned to be the two most devastating causes.

    Indeed, rampant large scale resumption proceedings and confiscation of rent-free lands by the East India Company government seriously affected he subsistence level of the Muslim intellectuals and the educated class, because these were the sole source of financial support for the Muslim educational institutions.

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    3. Mutiny : Farmer agitations

    The main jolt of the imperialistic operation was faced by the farmers, as a result they fought against the British rule in each and every step. Sadly though, references to such struggles are not easily available.

    The Neel (indigo)agitation of Bengal in 1859-60 is one of the largest farmer agitation of the modern times. European farmers had a monopoly over Neel farming. The foreigners used to force Indian farmers to harvest Neel and to achieve their means they used to brutally suppress the farmer. They were illegally beaten up, detained in order to force them to sell Neel at non-profitable rates. In 1866-68 Darbhanga and Champaran in Bihar witnessed agitation by Neel farmers.

    The farmers of Jessore (Bangladesh) revolted in 1883 and again in 1889-90. Seventh decade of the 19th century witnessed large scale land related problems. This time it was East Bengal. The landowners of East Bengal were infamous for the oppression of the artisans of Bengal. They used to illegally confiscate their crops, properties and land. Bengali farmers had a long tradition of opposition to oppression, in 1782 for the first time the Bengali farmers stood against the East India Company's taxman Devi Singh.

    In 1872-76 they joined associations which were against such revenue collection methods. They attacked the landowners and their go-downs and looted them. They were finally suppressed when the Government directly interfered in the matter. Inspite of this, small scale agitation continued. It ended when the Government finally promised to legislate laws to protect their interests.

    The situation deteriorated to such an extent that in 1874, they got together in Pune and Ahmednagar district in order to chalk out their future course of action. They decide on socially boycotting such moneylenders and landowners. At various places, they seized various legal documents related to their properties from the moneylenders and burnt it. The Government suppressed it using artillery and cavalry. In other parts of the country various other such agitations took place among which the revolt by Mopila farmers of North Kerala against the oppression let loose by Genimi landowners. Between 1836-54 they related 22 times.

    Fresh revolts took place again in 1873-80. In similar way the farmers in the plains of Assam revolted between 1893-94 against high revenue rates. Farmers declined to pay at such high revenue rates and were finally suppressed by the Government which used all the brutal methods in its book.

    titu mir Sayyid Nisar Ali (1781-1831) nick named Titu Mir is considered to be Shahid and Ghazi among the Muslims.
    It is significant that many uprisings of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century opposed the planter raj by either refusing to grow indigo in the lands where they were originally growing food, and also by refusing to pay their taxes. The first phase of revolts in Eastern India started in the early part of the nineteenth century under Biswanath Sardar who looted the Neelkunthis (or the estates of Indigo planters). Two decades later the first signs of trouble again emerged when the cultivators of Saran, Tirhut, Munger, Bhagalpur and Purnia refused to plant indigo. In Madhubani subdivision they formed a body and refused to plant indigo. Another major revolt against the indigo planters and their zamindars was that led by the Wahabi peasant leader Titu Mir in 24 Parganas of Bengal (1831) who provided leadership to both Muslim and Hindu lower caste peasantry.

    The East India Company appointed its agents for indigo and opium trade and passed regulations that made indigenous trade illegal. In other areas like Khurda they put a tax on the production of salt and ensured that salt could only brought from agents who had been given leases by the Company.

    During Titu Mir's life when the British were gradually getting control of the Indian subcontinent the Muslims could not adjust to the foreign rule and a Jihad was declared against the British.

    The Muslim attitude in the subcontinent after being deprived of the Mughal rule (after the battle of Plassey, 1757) and the enforcement of permanent settlement in Bengal, 1793 by Lord Cornwallis was severely anti-British. As a reaction the Muslim turned to extreme Islamic fundamentalism i.e. Wahabism. We have to therefore, assess Titu Mir in this back drop. An analysis of the situation by any objective observer will come to the conclusion that military option adopted by Titu Mir had very little chance of success as he was pitted against the might of the British Empire. Nevertheless, credit must be given to Titu Mir for the bravery shown for standing up for the rights of the peasants against the newly created Hindu landlords by the permanent settlement.

    Titu Mir's rebellion lasted a short time. He operated from 24 Parganas, Nadia and Faridpur. In 1831 in the first two confrontations with British troops he defeated them using his Bamboo Stockade (Bansher Kella).

    Titu Mir's revolt cannot be compared to the battles fought by kings and nobles against the encroaching powers of British imperialism which were a threat to their sovereignty. This revolt was fuelled by the desperation and hopelessness of the ordinary people. Though relatively puny and doomed to failure, it, nevertheless, signalled the common man's capacity for resistance. The victory lay in the challenge which was also, in a sense, a statement of identity.

    In Titu Mir she draws upon a combination of history, folk tale and legend to recreate the story of a man with an innate sense of fairness as well as the courage to fight against odds for the rights of ordinary people. Written in a sparse colloquial style which, even in translation, retains the immediacy and rhythm of an oral recital, Titu Mir is proof of the writer's enduring concern with the portrayal of socio-economic exploitation as a means of holding a mirror up to injustice and oppression.



    Thus ordinary peasants were forced to buy salt from the agents at exorbitant rates. In Chittagong the British started the method of revenue collection from cotton and gave over the collection rights to speculators through the establishment of karpas mahals. This affected the Chakmas (who were essentially shifting cultivators) adversely as they cultivated cotton on their sterile lands and exchanged it for rice, salt and other necessities. They reacted under the leadership of Janbox Khan in 1782 and gathered the people to stop payment of cotton. They also destroyed the storehouses of the lease holders who protected their stocks with the help of the British. A similar pattern was also seen in the case of the Kurda revolts where peasants made salt in violation of the Company’s orders and attacked and looted the stores of the salt agents. This clearly showed that it was not only the land tenure and tax policies but also the trading practices in commodities of daily use that had impacted the peasantry and spurred it into rebellion.

    For example sannyasis and fakirs rebellions of the late eighteenth century were led by settler sanyasis from the Giri and fakirs from the Madari sects who had settled in Mymensigh as peasants.

    Many of them had turned to agriculture and were regular peasants who were a victim of British merchants.

    Similarly Titu Mir’s Wahabi protests found a mass base in lower caste Hindu and Muslim peasantry because of its agrarian programme. In both cases the leaders of the movements belonged to religious traditions that were outside the pale of organised mainstream religion that formed the basis of most feudal authority. Similarly K N Pannikar (‘Peasant Revolts in the Malabar’, in A R Desai eds., Peasant Struggles in India) has effectively shown how the class conflict between the Muslim peasantry and Hindu landlords structured the contours of the nineteenth century protests where religion gave them both moral strength and a potent language to articulate their demands.

    Dudu Miah gave it the shape of an agitational movement of the peasantry in a mortal confrontation with the zaminders and indigo planters

    Indigo planters were put into public trial and executed. The indigo depots were burned down. Many planters fled to avoid being caught. The zamindars were also targets of the revolting peasants. However the revolt was brought down by iron hand. Large forces of police and military backed by the British Government and the zamindars mercilessly slaughtered a number of peasants. In spite of this the revolt was fairly popular, involving almost the whole of Bengal

    The Government was forced to appoint a committee which was to dwell into the corrupt practices related with this system and suggest means to reduce it. Yet the oppression of landowners and agitation of the farmers against them continued. In 1866-68 Darbhanga and Champaran in Bihar witnessed agitation by Neel farmers.

    The farmers revolt had a second aspect, which was religious in colour. It started as a religious purification movement but soon changed its character, and without taking into consideration to which religion the Jamindar, landlord and moneylender belonged to, they started attacking on them. Finally their general outburst came out in the form of series of revolts against the British imperialism throughout the country.



    Poet Jasim Uddin and Bangobandu

    Bangabandhu bids farewell to Indira Gandhi at Tejgaon airport in March 1972.Would like to cite another anecdote. A couple of months before the August tragedy, poet Jasimuddin asked me: "Bhai, could you accompany me to Dhanmondi? I've an urgent talk with Bangabandhu." I gladly agreed. So far as I can recollect, the rickshawalla demanded taka two. It was exorbitant. The poet got angry. He haggled with the rickshaw-puller over the fair and hired the rickshaw from Bangladesh Bank to Bangabandhu Bhavan for taka one and a-half.

    On reaching Bangabandhu Bhavan, the poet paid and patted the rickshawalla and walked straight to the drawing room. I followed him. Bangabandhu came down from the first floor. The two great Bengalis exchanged warm greetings and sat down on a sofa.

    The poet said: "You're from Faridpur, I'm also from Faridpur (district). I've come to you for a tadbir (a favour). My son-in-law is your son-in-law. Isn't it?" "Of course," Bangabandhu laughed and quipped: "Your son-in-law (meyejamai) is my son-in-law. I do understand what you want to say. You and Bhabi should not worry for Maudud. He is alright in jail. He will be released as soon as possible. I'm giving the order."

    Then they chatted for some time. The poet was highly gratified by the gesture of the president and supreme leader of the nation. Bangabandhu knew very well that the palli-kavi shouldn't be entertained with tea or coffee. So, he asked his servant to serve him with muri, gur (molasses) and coconut -- favourites of the poet.

    This was Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. As a politician and statesman, he was not above mistakes or follies. As a mortal human being, he had his weaknesses and limitations. History will absolve all his mistakes and weaknesses. As the independence hero and nationalist leader, he is second to none (Syed Abul Maksud is a noted writer, researcher and columnist,Daily Star,Aug 15, 2009).

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    4. Lesson from Liberation War: Never to Forget

    Our Liberation War: Down the Path of History

    Jasim Uddin - Poems of Independence

  • "Bangladesh" an Introduction to the world..
  • Presentation on Bangladesh and Ekush
  • Bangladesh 55th Omor Ekushey February

  • What Mujib Said
  • 1971 March 7th shek mujibur rahman
  • AMAR SONAR BANGLADESH-Natural Beauty
  • The Beauty of Bangladesh
  • Sabina Yasmin : Ektara Lagena Amar Dotaro Lagena
  • Pankaj Mallick- the greatest cultural icons of Bengal
  • Na Kar Itna Pyaar... Pankhaj Mallick
  • Amar Jabar Bela - Angur Bala - Old Nazrul Song
  • Talat Mahmood - Be Rehm Aasman
  • Madhubala and Dilip Kumar

    The paintings depict defining moments in the history of Bengal, including The Battle of Plassey, Indigo Revolt, Farayezi Movement, Nuruldin's Rebellion, Uprising of the Fakirs, Surja Sen's Armed Rebellion, Nankar Movement, Tonk Movement, Tebhaga Movement, Language Movement (1952), Mass Upsurge (1969) and Liberation War (1971). The themes are very close to the hearts of Bengalis and the nation draws courage and inspiration from these historical events.

    All the painters are well recognised and have been contributing to Bangladeshi art for a long time. The paintings have a distinct touch of realism and clearly focus on the historical episodes over the ages. Bengali patriotism, valour, passion, hopes and aspirations have been articulated with unique brushstrokes and skilful use of colours. The paintings are vibrant and bold. Most highlight figure compositions and the characters' dynamism. Most importantly, all of these paintings emphasise the sentiments of the masses and undying love for the motherland.

    The themes are very close to the hearts of Bengalis and the nation draws courage and inspiration from these historical events.
























  • (Left) “Language Movement” by Hashem Khan, (top right)“Tebhaga Movement” by Samarjit Roy Chowdhury and (bottom right)“Nuraldin’s Rebellion” by Iftikhar Uddin Ahmed.

    Most highlight figure compositions and the characters' dynamism. The paintings are vibrant and bold. Most importantly, all of these paintings emphasise the sentiments of the masses and undying love for the motherland.

    The Birth of Bangla Language

  • Bengali Language Status
  • Spoken in: Bangladesh, India and some other countries
  • Region: Eastern South Asia
  • Total speakers: 230 million (2006)
  • Ranking: 4-7 (native speakers; varying estimates)
  • Language family: Indo-European
    Indo-Iranian
    Indo-Aryan
    Magadhi Family
    Assamese Bengali & Bengali
  • Writing system: Bengali script

    Official status: Official language of Bangladesh, India, and Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura Regulated by: Bangla Academy (Bangladesh) Paschimbanga Bangla Akademi (West Bengal)



    Bengali or Bangla is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pâli and Sanskrit.

    Bengali is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. With nearly 230 million native speakers, Bengali is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world (it is ranked 5th in the world). Bengali is the main language spoken in Bangladesh; in India, Bengali is ranked as the second most spoken language. Along with Assamese, it is geographically the most eastern of the Indo-European languages.

    History

    Like many other Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, Bengali arose from the Magadhi Apabhramsha melting pot of Middle Indic languages, around the turn of the first millennium CE. Some argue for much earlier points of divergence - going back to even 500 CE, but the language wasn't static; different varieties coexisted and authors often wrote in multiple dialects. For example, Magadhi Apabhramsha is believed to have evolved into Magadhi Abahatta around the 6th century which competed with Bengali for a period of time. Usually 3 periods are identified in the history of Bengali:



    Old Bengali (900/1000 CE1400 CE) texts include Charyapada, devotional songs; emergence of pronouns Ami, tumi, etc; verb inflections -ila, -iba, etc. Oriya and Assamese branch out in this period.

    Middle Bengali (14001800 CE) - major texts of the period include Chandidas's Srikrishnakirtan; elision of word-final ô sound; spread of compound verbs; Persian influence. Some scholars further divide this period into early and late middle periods.

    New Bengali (since 1800 CE) - shortening of verbs and pronouns, among other changes (e.g. tahar tar 'his'/'her'; koriyachhilô korechhilo he/she had done).

    Historically closer to Pali, Bengali saw an increase in Sanskrit influence during the Middle Bengali (Chaitanya era), and also during the Bengal Renaissance. Of the modern Indo-European languages in South Asia, Bengali and Marathi retain a largely Sanskrit vocabulary base while Hindi and others are more influenced by Arabic and Persian. Until the 18th century, there was no attempt to document the grammar for Bengali.

    The first written Bengali dictionary 'Vocabolario em idioma Bengalla, e Portuguez dividido em duas partes' was written by the Portuguese missionary Manoel da Assumpcam between 1734 and 1742. Nathaniel Brassey Halhed, a British grammarian, wrote a modern Bengali grammar 'A Grammar of the Bengal Language' (1778) that used Bengali types in print for the first time. Raja Ram Mohan Roy, the great Bengali Reformer, also wrote a "Grammar of the Bengali Language" (1832).

    During this period, the Choltibhasha form, using simplified inflections and other changes, was emerging from Shadhu Bhasha (older form) as the form of choice for written Bengali.

    Bengali was the focus, in 1951-52, of the Language Movement (Bhasha Andolon) in what was then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). Although Bengali speakers were majorities in the population of Pakistan, Urdu was legislated as the sole national language. On February 21, 1952, protesting students and activists walked into military and police fire in DU and 3 young students and several others were killed. Subsequently, UNESCO has declared 21 February as International Mother Language Day.

    Muktijuddha chronicles

    March 25, 1971

    Despite a landslide victory, winning 167 seats out of the169 allotted for East Pakistan, when Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was still refused the control of the state, Bangladeshis could not fail to acknowledge the conspiracy bred by the Pakistani military junta the whole time. Numerous incidents in the past showed neglect, callousness and a growing indifference toward the Bangladeshis. Even while Sheikh Mujib held talks with Yahya Khan, regarding a growing conflict prior to this day, Pakistani army platoons were sailing in through the ports of East Pakistan in plain clothes.

    The sheer sense of dread that lay in the minds of most Bangladeshis was overshadowed by an ambition to thwart the domination. To ‘pacify’ the people, the Pakistani army, led by Lieutenant General Tikka Khan, initiated Operation Searchlight from the midnight of March 25. It was not pacification but genocide, where even children were not spared. Women were raped, residential areas were shelled and the slums were pasted onto the grounds by the tanks and jeeps while people screamed inside of them.

    March 26, 1971

    To ascertain the crushed will of the Bangladeshis, the Pakistani army imprisons Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. However, Major Ziaur Rahman, one of the many courageous Bengali soldiers who had revolted against their Pakistani counterparts, announced the independence of Bangladesh on behalf of Sheikh Mujib, from the Kalurghat radio station in Chittagong.

    The announcement sparked an immediate reaction, sowing a dream of freedom in the minds of suppressed Bangladeshis, and paved the way for the liberation war.

    April 4, 1971

    Twelve senior officers of the liberation army assembled at the headquarters of the 2nd East Bengal regiment at Teliapara. Colonol MAG Osmany, Lieuntenant Colonel Abdur Rob, Major Kazi Nuruzzaman, Major Khaled Mosharraf, Major Shafat Jamil, Major Mainul Hossain Chowdhury and others at the meeting decided to engage the general public into the liberation war against the massive Pakistani army.

    Responsibilities of commanding operations in four sectors were also entrusted. Major Shafiullah was responsible for Sylhet-Brahmanbaria area while Major Khaled Mosharraf was given Comilla and Chittagong, Major Ziaur Rahman the Chittagong Hill Tracts and finally Major Abu Osman Chowdhury had Kushtia and Jessore. Colonel Osmani was declared commander of the Mukti Bahini.

    Major Khaled Mosharraf’s plan to recruit willing young and able bodied men, women and even teenagers from the refugee camps along the border and train them with guerrilla warfare and tactics was welcomed by the others at the meeting.

    April 11, 1971

    A tremendous battle between the Mukti Bahini and the Pakistani army occurred at Kalurghat. The standoff continued for a week after which the Mukti Bahini withdrew.

    April 12, 1971

    Following support from the Indian government, the headquarters of the Bangladesh Forces began operations in Calcutta.

    May 2, 1971

    Ramgarh, the western region near the border, which had been free and under the control of the Mukti Bahini, became the target of the Pakistan army. The army attacked the region from three directions and although the Mukti Bahini fought valiantly for some days, they had to ultimately withdrew.

    Liberation war fighters still believe that they learnt a good lesson about war strategies through this particular battle.

    May 9, 1971

    This was a black day for Bangladesh and would be forever lined along with the day Mir Zafar, Ghoseti and others had conspired with the British government against Nabab Sirajuddowla.

    On this day, in 1971, Golam Azam, then Emir of Jamaat-e-Islami, met governor Tikka Khan. During the meeting, Azam proposed to initiate a second wing of the Pakistani army, which will assist them in the so-called ‘pacification’ of the Bangladeshis.

    After acceptance from Tikka, a name proposal for the new wing given: Razakar Bahini. It was formed a few days later, in Khulna under the leadership of Moulana Yousuf. This force aided the Pakistan army to carry on with the genocide for the next eight months right until independence. Now, 36 years after independence, the political group is still at large and still unpunished for their crimes during the war.

    July 7, 1971

    The plan of training the general public in guerrilla warfare finally began to succeed. Although initially the Mukti Bahini took a defensive stance during March and April, after May, with a bigger force, some arms and resources that they could salvage from battles with the enemy and those who supported them, the faction now fought the war with renewed zeal.

    The notion was realised by the Pakistan army on this day when one of their adequately manned and armed patrols were successfully ambushed by a group of Mukti Bahini at Noapara near Kashba. As news of the battle spread through the land, it strengthened the will and fighting spirit of other Mukti Bahini platoons ready to take on more lethal operations.

    July 10, 1971

    Possibly the success on July 7 paved the way for this day when the 4th East Bengal Regiment successfully attacked a Pakistan army supply boat at Shalda River of Sector 2 near Jhikora.

    Despite the winning streak, Bangladeshis were still afflicted with the dread of being picked up Razakars, Al Badr and Pakistan army members and being taken to their camps. The camps were analogous to the ‘concentration camps’ of the Nazis and were more dreadful, due to the inhuman torture of the men and the rape of numerous women, from families who supported the dream of an ‘independent Bangladesh’.

    August 2, 1971

    Three companies of the ‘Z’ force, lead by Major Shafat Jamil attacked Pakistan army convoy in Dewanganj near Jamalpur. The battle that ensued had probably left a burning impression of the Mukti Bahinis fighting prowess and agility in the minds of those Pakistan army soldiers, who managed to retreat to Jamalpur after the attack. Freedom fighters believe that this was one of the turning points and would forever be a milestone achieved by them as they rarely lost in the scattered skirmishes and battles that occurred with the enemy for the next four months.
    surrender of pakistan army bangobandhu

    December 3, 1971

    mujib & hasinaAlthough their support was initially passive, the Indian army began operations

    inside Bangladesh with the Mukti Bahini. Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh Aurora became the commander of this joint forces and the move was aggravated when the Pakistan Air Force bombing Srinagar, Amritsar and other parts of India prior to this day. The Indo-Pakistan war broke out as a result.

    The joint forces of the Mukti Bahini and Indian army continued to rampage into Bangladesh with the surrender of Pakistan army becoming more viable with every passing second.

    December 16, 1971

    The Mukti Bahini and the Indian forces entered Dhaka city at 10:10am. Along with Group Captain A K Khondoker, deputy chief of staff, representing the Mukti Bahini, the instrument of surrender was signed by Jagjit Singh Aurora and Lieutenant General A A K Niazi at the then-Ramna recourse (now Suhrawardy Uddyan) at 5:01pm on this day, materialising the dream that so many had lost their lives, family members and shed blood for nine months.

    (Source:New Age, December 16, 2007).
  • History of Independence

  • Jasimuddin- The Poems of Independence
  • History of Bangladesh Independence
  • The Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971
  • 25th March 1971 [The Liberation war Bangladesh]
  • 1971 Surrender
  • Bangladesh" an Introduction to the world..
  • 7 March, 1971- Speech of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
  • Father of The Nation of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
  • Bangabandhu The father of Bengali Nation
  • Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
  • what mujib said
  • Bangladesh Genocide: Rape Victims
  • George Harrison - Bangladesh
  • O Amar Bangladesh....

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    4.Ansaruddin - Educationist, Social worker and fought for Indian Independence

    Fish motif 
in a clump of Lotus undivided Bengal), 19th Century A.D.- collection of Gurusady Museum Gajalaksmi 
  Moulds for mango paste, Slate Stone, Faridpur (undivided Bengal), 19th Century A.D.- collection of Gurusady Museum Slate Stone, Faridpur, 
(undivided Bengal), early 19th CenturyA.D.- collection of Gurusady Museum


    padma -riverJasim Uddin writes his father use to write poetry. Ansaruddin's best friend was Suresh Chandra Bose (Jibonkatha, 1964). He was also Chairman of Ambikapur Union.

    Jasim Uddin writes Poet Nazrul Islam visited two times Ambikapur, Faridpur. Poet Nazrul Islam was just came out of jail. He was visiting Ansaruddin's house and at that time the river Padma was flowing with all its beauty and destruction. Ansaruddin's daughters were married and their husbands were working for the British Government. They complained to poet's father, if Nazrul stays at Ambikapur house, they will never visit father in law.

    Ansaruddin became very annoyed and said to his son in laws - "Nazrul is the most famous bengali poet and he is my guest, if you do not visit me I do not care. I shall never ask my loveing guest to leave!"






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    5. Poet Nazrul Islam - Ansaruddin's loving Guest

    From Jibon Katha- Jasim Uddin 1964















    nazrul-jasimuddin 1972








































    firoza begum
























    Firoza Begum born in an aristocratic Muslim family in Faridpur district in the 1930s, Feroza Begum became drawn to music in her childhood. She had no formal education in music, but she used to render songs on the megaphone listening to contemporary music on records of the then popular singers such as Aashchorjomoyee Devi, Sati Devi, Angur Bala, Indu Bala and Swarnokumari Devi in the pantry of her parent's house.

    angur balaAngurbala had recorded about 300 songs for the Gramophone Company of which 50 were Nazrul songs. "The most interesting experience was when I met Kazi Shaheb for the first time," went on the legendary artiste. Recalling those eventful days, Angur said, "We waited impatiently to meet him. We thought that he would be a bearded man, dressed up in alkhella, with a toopi on his head. However, we were charmed to see a completely different person attired in a gerua panjabi, a yellow silk turban and strings of beads around his neck. A creative genius of his stature never seemed distant.

    "Kazi Shaheb would compose tunes focusing on the speciality of the artiste. Sometimes he would just explain the notations and then say in his usual manner 'Angur, it's now up to you to add the sweet angur (grape) flavour of your voice.' That is how I remember Nazrul," reminisced Angurbala.

  • Amar Jabar Bela - Angur Bala - Old Nazrul Song
  • Biday Sandhya Aasilo: Angur Bala
  • Eto Jal O Kajal_Angur Bala_Nazrulgeeti
  • Nishi Bhor Holo_Angur Bala.
  • Aamar Jabar Samay Holo Dao Biday_Angurbala Devi_Nazru
  • Nahe Nahe Priyo_Angur Bala
  • Kemone Rakhi Aankhi Bari_Angur Bala
  • Gaan Guli Mor_Angur Bala
  • Aashile E Bhanga Ghare_Angur Bala.
  • Indubala Devi... Thumari Tilang


  • By her unique presentation style Feroza Begum has emerged as the most prominent Nazrul Sangeet singer in the subcontinent. Though she is popular as a Nazrul singer, she renders other music genres such as geet, ghazal, thumri, dhadra and adhunik

    "I always dreamt of recording my songs and hoped everybody would listen to my music," says Feroza Begum, "Which is why I always wanted to go to Kolkata since songs were recorded there."

    Her dream came true in the summer of 1940. While a student of only class four she went to Kolkata to visit her maternal uncle's house. That trip turned out to be her first break. Her maternal uncle and a cousin took her to the rehearsal room of popular music production company HMV where National Poet of Bangladesh Kazi Nazrul Islam and his colleagues used to mingle.

    Few can forget the distinct, seasoned voice that gave Nazrul's songs the passion and vigour that it deserved. Feroza Begum, a legendary singer, not only popularised Nazrul Sangeet in the subcontinent but also exposed the depth, versatility and sophistication of this genre of music.

  • Firoza Begum talks about her life I
  • Firoza Begum talks about her life II
  • Firoza Begum talks about her life III


























  • Nazrul had another identity; he was closely related to the movies. He was a film director, dialogue writer, music composer and music director. He worked both in Bangla and Hindi films. He worked in more than a dozen films.

    On the first day of 1934 Dhruba was released in Kolkatta. In this cinema Nazrul was the director, songwriter, music composer, singer, and actor. In this movie there were two directors; Nazrul and Saityendranath Dev. It was produced and released by Pioneer Films.

    In 1931 Nazrul was offered a prestigious position of music director at Pioneer Films Company. Before Nazrul, no Bangalee Muslim glorified such a respectable post in the world of cinema of Indian subcontinent. Nazrul was related to cinema from 1930 to 1941. During this time he worked in more than 12 movies, such as, Dhruba (1934), Patalpuri (1935), Bidyapati (Bangla version, 1938), Bidyapati (Hindi version, 1938), Nandini (1941) etc. 1933 was a remarkable year for the Bangla cinema. Nazrul's first movie Dhruba began to be prepared. On the first day of 1934 Dhruba was released in Kolkatta. In this cinema Nazrul was the director, songwriter, music composer, singer, and actor.

    Dhruba included many melodious songs- as many as 18. Among these 18 songs 17 were composed by Nazrul himself, and only one song was composed by Girish Chandra Ghose, a prominent dramatist, who wrote the story of Dhruba. Master Prabodh sang six songs, Angur Bala sang four, Nazrul sang three songs. Parul Bala sang two songs. There were some duets also; Kazi Nazrul Islam and Master Prabodh sang a duet, Angur Bala and Master Prabodh sang another duet song.

    In May 1925 at the Congress session at Faridpur, in the presence of Mahatma Gandhi and Deshbandhuchittaranjan Das, Nazrul sang 'Ghor re ghor re amar sadher charka ghor' (Whirl, O my dear spinning wheel, whirl).

    Towards the end of 1925, Nazrul joined politics and attended political meetings at Comilla, Midnapore, Hughli, faridpur, Bankura and many other places. Apart from being a member of the bengal provincial congress, he played an active role in organising the Sramik-Praja-Swaraj Dal.

    In November 1926, Nazrul contested from East Bengal for a seat in the upper house of the central legislative council. In this connection he extensively toured East Bengal, Faridpur, especially Dhaka division.

    Nazrul Islam was Poet Jasim Uddin's best friend- Nazrul visited twice Ambikapur

    nazrul's writing


































    On 7 January 1923, Nazrul, as an under-trial prisoner, gave a deposition in self-defence in the court of chief presidency magistrate Swinho. That deposition, 'Rajbandir Jabanbandi', has been acknowledged as a piece of literature.
    In the judgement delivered on January 16, Nazrul was sentenced to a year's rigorous imprisonment.

    While Nazrul was serving his term in Alipore Central Jail, Rabindranath dedicated to him his musical play Basanta (22 January 1923). Nazrul celebrated the news by composing his poem about the ecstasy of poetic creation: 'Aj Srsti Sukher Ullase' (In the ecstasy of creation).

    The Dawn of New Creation

    (Aaj Srishti Shukher Ullashey)

    Today at the Nativity of New Creation,
    A thrill of joy runs riot in me,
    My face is aglow, my eyes are radiant,
    My blood boils and bubbles and dances in ecstasy
    Today at the Baptism of New Life!
    Today in the imprisoned well of my heart –
    A deluge arises and the flood-tide violently
    breaks through the barriers.
    There comes smile, there are tears,
    Liberty appears, fetters follow,
    I learn to speak, today, my bosom is
    split up, there comes the joy of
    my bitter sorrow,
    Lo! There comes the sorrow of
    a forlorn heart –
    Today at the Baptism of a New world!

    There appear the deserted, there wail the dejected,
    And heart-rending lamentations beggar description,
    The ocean is swelling, the sky trembling,
    the wind blowing,
    Vishnu's discus piercing the firmament,
    the trident of Shiva being hurled.
    Behold! The comet and the meteor
    Out to subvert the Creation:
    At this, in my breast are blossoming
    now the flowers of million gardens,
    Ay, at the prospect of a Millennium!

    Translated by Abdul Hakim

    Srishti Shukher Ullashey - RAP

  • Poem "Rabi Hara"by Kazi Nazrul Islam's own voice, the day rabindranath tagore died
  • Nazrul Song - Mor Ghum Ghore
  • nazrul song mor ghumo ghore elo monohor
  • "tomar aakhir moto" "nazrul sangeet" "nazrul geeti" "firoza begum"
  • Nazrul Song - Momero Putul
  • Firoza Begum - Ogo Priyo tobo Gaan
  • chowk gelo- nazrul sangeet by Firoza Begum
  • Nazrul Geeti - Amar Jabar Shomoy Holo
  • Nazrul Geeti - Kul Bhanga Nodi - Ferdous Ara
  • Ghor bhulano surey - Nazrul geeti
  • Shakila Zafore - Nazrul Geeti - AaMar Jaabar Shomoy Holo
  • Konok Chapa sings Nozrul Geeti - AashiBay Tumie Janie Priyo
  • Rongila Apne Radha -Nazrul geeti
  • Nazrul Geeti - Kul Bhanga Nodi - Ferdous Ara
  • shaono ratey jodi- manna dey- NAZRUL sangeet
  • Mone Pore Aaj - Nazrul Geeti - Debipriya Das
  • Harano Hiyar Nikunjo Pothe - Nazrul geeti - Debipriya Das
  • karar oi lowho kopat - bangladesh freedom song- nazrul sangeet
  • Mor Ghumo Ghure (Nazrul geeti)
  • Priyo emono raat (Nazrul geeti) singer: Anuradha ji
  • Tumi kun kanoner ful (Fahmida Nabi)
  • NAZRUL GEETI Padmar Dhheu Re FERDOUSI RAHMAN
  • riniki jhiniki- nazrul geeti sung by KA SHAKIL
  • shaono ratey jodi- manna dey- NAZRUL sangeet
  • e priyo amare - nazrul geeti
  • Nazrul Geeti---Firoza Begum
  • chowk gelo- nazrul sangeet by Firoza Begum
  • War of Bangladesh
  • Creation of Bangladesh

    Old Nazrul Geeti- 78 rpm recorder in 30's

  • ANGUR BALA ....OLD SONG.... AMAR JABAR SHOMAY
  • Nishi Bhor Holo - Angurbala 78 rpm
  • Nahay Nahay Prio .. Angur Bala
  • Kmono Daki--- Angur Bala 78 rpm
  • Ganguli Mor Ahato..- Angur Bala- Nazrul Geeti.
  • Bidayya sandha Ahsilo, Angur Bala
  • Ato Jal Kajol Choke- Angur Bala
  • Aashile E Bhanga Ghare- Legendor ANGUR BALA
  • Firoza Begum - Ogo Priyo tobo Gaan
  • Firoza Begum - Mora Aar Jonome
  • Angur Bala sings Classic O Sajna
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    6. Ansaruddin became a School teacher instead of joining Police Service

      

    Jasim Uddin (1964) writes,
    "My father went to visit school where he learned both english and bengali. But when Pir Dudu Miah fought against the British and burnt Nilkhutis (Indigo Plantations) forbid to learn english in E. Bengal. My father has to leave english education.... But if my father learned english he could have joined civil service and our family could have lived without financial troubles.

    But my father visited bengali school where he obtained a scholarship. He studied workss of Jogenranath Sarkar, Hafez translated by Krishno Majumdar, Battle of Pallasy written by Nabin Sen, Michael Madhusudan Dutta, Mathematic by Jadob etc. My father's respected teacher Rajmohon Pandit requested him to join Faridpur Hitoshi School as a teacher.
    My father could have joined police service and earn lot of money. But he decided to work as a teacher and he used to say to serve the country the profession of a teacher is the most approprite profession. He dedicated his whole life as a teacher. Many left the school but my father's best friend Suresh Chandra Bose never left the school. Hitoshi School is not a name but was an orginisation of a Hindu Temple or Muslim Masjit. These two teachers d dedicated their livese for education."

    Jasim Uddin never fogot the great contribution laid by his father Ansaruddin. Perhaps to immortalize Ansaruddin Jasim Uddin established Ansaruddin School in 1969 at Village Ambikapur which become High School in 1971 The students from far Char (islands of Padma) came to study here. Because of this school alphabet rose from 10 percent to 70 percent today. Most of the students come from poor family.

    ansaruddin, jasimuddin's father jasim uddin

    Haji Shariatullah was born in Banderlakola, Faridpur district, in 1781. He was the son of an ordinary farmer. After getting his early education from his village, he went to Arabia to perform Hajj at an early age of 18 years. He got education from the Madrsa al Rahimia (founded by Shah Waliullah's father). He stayed there from 1799 to 1818 and got his religious education. He learnt Arabic and Persian from his teacher, Maulana Basharat. During his stay in Arabia he came into close contact with Wahabism started by Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab. He was really influenced by the point of views of the Wahabi Movement. While he was in Arabia, he kept on thinking to be of help to his muslim brothers in East Bengal.

    Islam was being invaded by non-islamic religions, traditions, customs and cultures. Government imposed unnecessary taxes upon the farmers and the low class. Farmers were not appreciated for their hard work nor were given rights or money they deserved. Britishers had crushed the muslims economically at their arrival in subcontinent so that they could not rise against them. They also made sure that muslims should remain illiterate and uneducated. Thus, muslims became politically backward and were unaware of laws and regulations. Due to this, Haji Shariatullah started this movement in 1818. He was sure that a revival of Islam is crucially necessary. Haji Shariatullah awakened the Muslims of Bengal by initiating the Faraizi movement. It was simply a peaceful protest against the cruelty of the government.

    The Faraizi movement was founded by Haji Shariatullah by Bengali Muslims. After returning from Mecca (hence the title Haji) after a 20 year hiatus Shariatullah, seeing the degraded Muslims of Bengal, called on them to give up un-Islamic practices and act upon their duties as Muslims (Faraiz). The movement was also concerned with the British influence upon Muslims and called for social justice. Under his son, Dahdu Miyan, the movement took a more militant form.


    He organised resistance to Hindu landlords and money lenders, boycotting the payment of taxes and interest charges. He also formed an armed force of cudgel bearers to attack the zamindars and their followers and then went one stage further by attempting to form a parallel Muslim government within East Bengal. District Commissioners called khalifas were appointed to each village, their role being to raise funds, carry out propaganda, and settle disputes between villagers who were expressly forbidden from taking their cases to the British courts without permission. The British made persistent attempts to prosecute Miyan for crimes ranging from theft to murder, but all such allegations foundered from a lack of witnesses prepared to give evidence – though he was placed under arrest during the Mutiny. However the faraizi ‘state within a state’ went into decline following Miyan’s death in 1860.



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    7. Students and Teachers of Ansaruddin High School

    There are 279 female and 223 male students in the school

    Teachers

  • 01; Md.Abu Zafar Sheikh ; Headmaster(Acting); B. Sc. B-Ed
  • 02; Abdur Rashid Molla; Assistant Teacher; BA, B-Ed
  • 03; Rabin Kumar Chatterjee; Assistant Teacher; B Sc, B-Ed
  • 04; Md.Abdus Salam Miah; Assistant Teacher; KAMIL
  • 05; Md.Azad Hossain; Assistant Teacher; B Com.(Hons) M.Com. in Accounting, B-Ed
  • 06; S.M.Obaidur Rahman; Physical Teacher; BSc,BP-Ed, B-Ed
  • 07; Khaled Bin Islam; Agriculture Teacher; Diploma in Agriculture, MSS & B-Ed.
  • 08; Most. Zannatul Ferdous ; Assistant Teacher; BSS (Hons),MSS in Economics, B-Ed
  • 09; Md. Ameer Ali; Assistant Teacher; BSc (Hons) in Physics, B-Ed
  • 10; Ritu Begum; Assistant Teacher; MSS in Social Science, B-Ed
  • 11; Bikash Chandra Biswas; Assistant Teacher; B. SS (Hons),MSS in Political Science
  • 12; Md.Motin Mollah; Assistant Teacher; BSc (Hons) MSc in Maths, B-Ed
  • 13; Umma Salma Begum; Junior Teacher; HSC
  • 14; Md.Mizanur Rahman; Assistant Teacher; B.A, Diploma in Computer-Science

  • ansaruddin high school

    teachers of anser uddin, March 2010
    21st Feb 2010

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    8. Kabi Jasim Uddin Computer Center

    Ansaruddin High School is perhaps the only school in Bangladesh that have about 18 computers. The dream of digital Bangladesh is going to be true, if computer training courses take place. It is difficult to obtain trained teacher, but efforts have been taken to train all the teacher. Now the school has internet connection and website. Dr. Taufik Elahi Choudhury, Bir Bikram, poet's son in law, is the president of the school and taking the program for a modern school for the poor population of several neglected villages. It may be mentioned that about 70 percent of the students are women.

    The school is deeply oblized by the donation of peoples of Pakistan. His excellency High Commissioner and his charmed wife inaugurated the computer center on 2nd April 2007 at Ambikapur, Faridpur. The school has futher obtained 20 sewing machines from the High Commissioner of Pakistan,.

    His Excellency High Commissioner of Pakistan




    Digital Bangladesh

    The global food and financial crisis has hit hardest the poorest people in developing countries, and taken poverty and starvation to alarming heights in Bangladesh, observed two global reports released on Wednesday.

    The Global Hunger Index 2009, prepared by the International Food Policy Research Institute, has ranked Bangladesh 67th in 84 countries. The country had been plagued by the highest prevalence of under-weight children, who are more than 40 per cent of the total number of children.

    The State of Food Insecurity, an annual report published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Food Programme, also affirmed that many households were affected by the fall in remittances from expatriate workers and other impacts of the economic downturn on people in Bangladesh.

    On an average, at the end of 2008, households were spending 62 per cent of their income on food, up from 52 per cent in 2005, said the report, adding that such increase in the food budget has forced households to reduce their expenditure on health and education. ‘In Bangladesh and India, more than 40 per cent of the children are underweight,’ said the IFPRI’s report.

    ‘In South Asia, women’s low social status and limited access to schooling have dire consequences for the nutrition, health and well-being of both mothers and their children,’ said Agnes Quisumbing, co-author of the report (New Age October 14, 2009)

    Questions need to be asked though: What is the scope of Digital Bangladesh? What are its mission and goals? Is there a roadmap to achieve the desired end? Activists and enthusiasts who like to go beyond rhetoric and look for concrete plans of action are raising these questions from different pulpits and platforms. Answers to these questions are yet to be articulated, and as one waits for those to take shape, expectations build, demands grow, and interest groups come up with their own interpretations and agendas. While the scope of Digital Bangladesh is likely to evolve, being shaped by the economic, political, social and cultural realities, there will be some common threads that reasonable people can agree upon.

    Digital Bangladesh will entail applications of ICT to enhance efficiency of operation, administration, management, and governance. In a Digital Bangladesh:

  • Educational institutions will be connected to the world wide web of knowledge and communication networks enabling open exchange of ideas and information.
  • Heath-care institutions (medical colleges and hospitals in big and small cities, diagnostic laboratories, hospitals and clinics in rural areas) and heath-care providers (doctors, nurses, medical technicians, paramedics) will be connected to one another and to patients everywhere including remote locations; information on hygiene, safe health practices, disease prevention, spread of diseases, and health alerts will be easily available.
  • Governance will be made efficient and transparent through the use of ICT, the government officials will be able to communicate with and provide services to citizens promptly and effectively.
  • Industrial concerns will use ICT for promoting and marketing their products, managing communications between management and workforce, and democratizing the decision making process.
  • Agriculture sector will be brought under digital management so that seeds, fertilizers and other enabling commodities are readily accessible to farmers, and relevant alerts, information, and know-how can be promptly communicated.
  • Overall land administration that includes land survey, land records, and land management will be integrated and pertinent records and information digitized.
  • A robust industry to develop cutting-edge software and hardware products will flourish and ICT trained manpower will be a national resource; and
  • An information and communication highway system will make the benefits and services of ICT sector available everywhere in the country.

    The process of transforming Bangladesh to a “digital” country will be complex. Many administrative, strategic, management-related, and even socio-economic issues have to be addressed and resolved along the way. Two core issues are manpower development and democratisation. A competent workforce with the requisite technical expertise, as well as communication and managerial skills, will be necessary, not only in the big cities but throughout the country including rural areas.

    The Computer Literacy Program is indeed a step towards a Digital Bangladesh, as it has explored some of the territories that have to be charted to realize that lofty vision

    In October 2004 Google started what would be a controversial, acrimonious and litigious process of digitising millions of books from libraries around the world. Initially Oxford University, Harvard, Stanford and two other libraries agreed to have their entire catalogues digitised, but soon the process that was seen as the promoting the democratisation of knowledge also came to be viewed as one that potentially shattered copyright violations. While Google did overstep its boundaries by scanning thousands if not more books that were under copyright, the spirit of their work was often overlooked when it rightly should have been celebrated. There is no denying that a project as ambitious as Google Books has the potential to change how we view and access knowledge and in a way it could be the most important thing to happen to academia since the rise of the internet

    The advantages of such a programme would be endless, if the system was made available to each and every university in Bangladesh, then there could be a real national push towards research-based education.

    Bangladesh needs to learn form that example, it may be a long time before we are influential in the world, but till that point we must provide our citizens with an educational experience that will turn them into world leaders. If someone is interested in a subject beyond just memorising what is taught in class, then he must be given the scope to research his interests and come up with a scholarly perspective as well.

    The more we provide for our students the greater chance we give them to succeed and this book digitisation programme could be just the perfect platform that our government needs both to look forward to a digital Bangladesh but also to look forward to an enlightened Bangladesh

    Digital Bangladesh will entail applications of ICT to enhance efficiency of operation, administration, management, and governance. In a Digital Bangladesh:

  • Educational institutions will be connected to the world wide web of knowledge and communication networks enabling open exchange of ideas and information.
  • Heath-care institutions (medical colleges and hospitals in big and small cities, diagnostic laboratories, hospitals and clinics in rural areas) and heath-care providers (doctors, nurses, medical technicians, paramedics) will be connected to one another and to patients everywhere including remote locations; information on hygiene, safe health practices, disease prevention, spread of diseases, and health alerts will be easily available.
  • Governance will be made efficient and transparent through the use of ICT, the government officials will be able to communicate with and provide services to citizens promptly and effectively.
  • Industrial concerns will use ICT for promoting and marketing their products, managing communications between management and workforce, and democratizing the decision making process.
  • Agriculture sector will be brought under digital management so that seeds, fertilizers and other enabling commodities are readily accessible to farmers, and relevant alerts, information, and know-how can be promptly communicated.
  • Overall land administration that includes land survey, land records, and land management will be integrated and pertinent records and information digitized.
  • A robust industry to develop cutting-edge software and hardware products will flourish and ICT trained manpower will be a national resource; and
  • An information and communication highway system will make the benefits and services of ICT sector available everywhere in the country

    The computer and Internet will be leveraged for digital management and delivery of educational materials. CLP has already taken important steps in the implementation of this idea. In addition to making use of available materials on the Internet, it will also be necessary to present materials in a way that relate to the experience of students.

    The Computer Literacy Program is indeed a step towards a Digital Bangladesh, as it has explored some of the territories that have to be charted to realize that lofty vision.

  • 'Digital Bangladesh' down
    Most of 250 official websites mock PM's vision for change

    While the government dreams of a "Digital Bangladesh" by 2021, most of the 250 official websites sampled in recent weeks contained outdated information, dead links and "web page under construction" signs. The sports ministry website, for instance, features the "current news" about a triumphant return of the Bangladesh cricket team from a World Cup tour--three years ago. The websites for the power ministry's Energy and Mineral Resources Division, as well as for the religious affairs ministry, had several cyber potholes and "under construction" signs. The industries ministry website gives the news of Dilip Barua being sworn in as the new minister last January, 2009, as its current news. The most recent information on the site is the "daily stock position of Urea fertiliser", which is two months old. A number of anti-virus software also warned of possible malware when accessing some government websites. Experts say that government websites, launched 10 years ago as part of the e-governance initiative, were intended to make it easier for citizens to interact with public agencies. It meant no longer wait in queues in government offices to make complaints, pay bills or apply for special programmes. Instead, the websites are merely Windows dressing, say experts.

    "Most of the websites are there just to be there," said Mustafa Jabbar, president of Bangladesh Computer Samity, a national coalition of technology-based organisations. "They do not do anything to help the people or organisations." He said most sites simply list the names of department officials, messages from directors and historical information that sometimes requires scrolling through numerous screens.

    In January, Badda resident Ali Akbar heard that anyone could download textbooks from the National Curriculum and Text Board website. He decided to download and print some out for his eight-year-old housemaid Khuku. "I went to the website to download the books and the page was not there," he said, adding, "I kept checking back for the next three days and still found it not working. It got me frustrated so I gave in, and pretty much forgot about the whole thing later."

    A 2010 United Nations survey showed Bangladesh had improved its e-government but still ranked 134 out of 184 countries. That was above Pakistan, but below the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India. The ranking was based on criteria such as the presence of web pages, information on public policy and whether citizens could give immediate feedback. Government officials admit their websites are unattractive, clunky and a flop among citizens. They blame the lack of techno-savvy people to look after the websites, which require at least half an hour a day to update and maintain. So the task falls to administrators who work on the home pages in addition to their official duties.

    The result is that many websites are lagging behind. When the nation was on a swine flu alert last August, a review showed the websites for the health ministry and other government offices carried nothing on the scare. Even for more mundane matters--paying taxes or making an appointment to get a car fitness certificate--government websites fall far short, say experts. The portals for the 64 districts launched in January are not interactive, and mostly contain a collection of barebones information.

    Citizens using the otherwise well-designed sites for the National Board of Revenue (NBR) or Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) still face analogue procedures. They have to download applications, print them, fill them out by hand and then bring them into the respective offices. Many of the websites are also not available in Bangla, making them nearly useless to the bulk of the population.

    "The government needs to realise when they are providing content for the general people," said Jabbar, adding, "They need to do it in the language of the general people. They need to post contents for 150 million people, not just the five or six lakh who use Internet."

    But even the five or six lakh regular Internet surfers may find the cyber waves to be choppy. The website of the Ministry of Chittagong Hills Tracts Affairs, for one, has been dead for some time now. Ministry officials had no clue until The Daily Star enquired about it on Thursday. As of Sunday, the page remained blank except for a line of computer code (Daily Star, May 10, 2010).

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    9. Mukti Pani Filters (Freedom Water Filters)

    Prof. Meer Husain,P.G.,Professional Geologist, Kansas Dept. of Health & Environment, Wichita, Kansas, USA.
    set Mukti Pani Filter at Anseruddin High School in January 2010.

    Many scientists and NGOs have been promoting arsenic removal filters as the best solution to the arsenic crisis of Bangladesh and West Bengal of India, but they never deeply analyzed the impact of improper disposal of arsenic sludge on the ground, rivers and ponds etc to public health, water resources, agricultural resources and environment. We do not know how much damage has already been done to the environment of Bangladesh and West Bengal due to improper disposal of arsenic sludge. In Bangladesh, the situation is getting worse day by day due to the use of arsenic poisoned water for drinking and cooking purposes, contamination of food chain due to irrigation with arsenic contaminated water and improper disposal of arsenic sludge on the ground, river, ponds etc. are polluting the air, soil, water and the environment.

    mukti filter
    jamal & Meer Hossain, Ambikapur 2010

    Principles

    Mukti Pani Filter #1: is a gravity, mono media water filtration system. Granular charcoal ranges from 1.0-3.0 mm sizes are packed in a 4 to 5 gallon perforated plastic bucket. About 5 small holes of 3-4mm size at the bottom (around center) of the bucket provide water flow of 1-1.5 gallon/minute/ft2. A steel wire or plastic screen of <1.0 - >0.85 mm mesh size is placed at the bottom of the bucket (inside) to retain the charcoal grains on the screen. The charcoal grains are laid on the screen and the thickness of the charcoal bed ranges from 5-6 inches. The charcoal or activated carbon is used as filter media to remove taste and odor causing compounds as well as organic substances from water. This filter is used when source waters are free of turbidity and color. These types of filters should be used all over Bangladesh and West Bengal of India before disinfecting waters with chlorine. The water flow through the charcoal media should not exceed more than 1 -2 gpm/ft2. This low flow of water through the charcoal media would provide enough contact/residence time to water with charcoal for removing odor, taste and organic matters. Microorganisms will not be removed by this process and as a result after filtration the water must be treated to kill pathogenic bacteria.

    Turbidity Removal Process: Significant amount of turbidity of water can be reduced if the waters are left undisturbed for about 8-12 hours. The silt and clay size particles are settled at the bottom of the water container. The water may then be slowly removed from the water container without agitating the settled turbid substances. This filtration process for the reduction of turbidity materials from water is the oldest known technique and people have been using this process for thousands of years. The people of Bangladesh and West Bengal of India may effectively reduce the turbidity of water by this process and in that case, they can effectively use Mukti Pani Filter #1 for removing odor, taste and organic compounds from waters. Mukti Pani Filter #2: is a dual media gravity filtration system and consists of three layers of gravel, sand and charcoal packed in a 6 gallon of plastic bucket. About 10-15 small holes of 4-5mm size at the bottom (around center) of the bucket provide a flow of water of 1-1.5 gallon/minute/ft2.

    The bottom layer consists of gravel, the sizes of the gravel ranges from 1.0-50.0 mm and the gravel layer is placed on a screen of <1.0->0.85 mm of mesh. The thickness of the gravel layer ranges from 2.0-3 inches. The middle layer consists of a mixture of conventional sand (40%) and coarse sand (60%). The size of the conventional sand ranges from 0.5-0.6 mm and the size of the coarse sand ranges from 0.7-3.0 mm. The sand layer is placed on a screen of <0.5->0.45 mm mesh on top of the gravel layer. The thickness of the sand layer ranges from 3-4 inches.

    The top layer consists of charcoal grains of 1.0-3.0 mm in size. The charcoal layer is placed on a screen of <1.0->0.85 mm mesh and placed on top of the sand layer. The thickness of the charcoal layer ranges from 4-5 inches. This is also a slow filtration system and is good for low turbidity water. The flow rate of water through these filter media should not exceed more than 2.0 gpm/ft2. When the filter media are clogged with turbidity materials, each media can be washed with clean water and reused again.

    Other Fiter media: Anthracite coal and activated carbon can be used in place of charcoal. Hard brick chips of gravel size can be used in place of gravel. Steel, aluminum, or earthen based containers may be used as a filter container.

    Screen media:

    Wire screen, plastic screen., nylon screen, stainless steel screen etc.

    Disinfection of water:

    In developed countries, pathogenic organisms in water that cause various types of diseases such as cholera, typhoid, dysentery, diarrhea etc. are no longer a problem due to proper water protection, treatment and monitoring. Boiling water is expensive but very effective process known for centuries for killing pathogenic bacteria in water. There are several chemical disinfectants are being used today for water treatment of which chlorine disinfection is simple, inexpensive and very effective. Chlorination is the oldest method of continuous disinfection for public water supplies. There are two theories regarding chlorine disinfection mechanism. One theory views that the vigorous action of chlorine against the bacterial cell destroys bacteria. The other theory is that the organisms die of starvation because the toxic nature of chlorine inactivates enzymes which empower microorganisms to use their food supply. Both Calcium Hypochlorite and Sodium Hypochlorite are being extensively used for treatment of potable water. The chemical reactions of hypochlorites with water are as follows:
    Calcium Hypochlorite Reaction: Ca(OCl)2 + 2H20------> 2HOCl + Ca(OH)2
    Sodium Hypochlorite Reaction: NaOCl + H20 -----------> HOCl + Na(OH)

    Why we should not use arsenic filters for removing arsenic from groundwater in Bangladesh and West Bengal: The geological, hydrological, hydro-geological and socio-economic conditions in Bangladesh and West Bengal of India are not suitable for taking care of arsenic sludge. The improper disposal of arsenic sludge will recontaminate air, soil, sediment, water resources, agricultural resources, ecosystem and the environment. This means that using arsenic removal filters and improper disposal of arsenic sludge will create more pollution and contamination problems and as a result this process should be stopped immediately.

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    10. Sport and Education Trip 2010

    Sport - 2010

    Education Trip 2010

    Amar Shonar Bangla Ami Tomay Valobashi

    Old Music of British-India

  • Kanan Devi... Bhajan
  • S.D. Burman
  • Kanan Devi... Kanan Bala
  • kanan devi..lagan..1941..madbhari madbhari
  • kanan devi.toofan mail (bengali).jawab1942.music.kamal dasgupta
  • Yeh Zindagi Usi Ki He (Anarkali)
  • Ek Pardesi
  • Last Modified: July 20, 2014

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