Banglapedia - User contributions [en]

Zoonosis

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'''Zoonosis''' a disease communicable from animals, especially vertebrates, to humans. However, both humans and animals are equally susceptible to this disease. Over 250 organisms are known to cause zoonotic infections, of which 30-40 spread from pets. The disease may be transmitted from direct contact, animal bite, byproducts or products of animals, animal waste, animal excreta, etc. Rabies and Leptospirosis spread with the increase of human and animal population; mobility among men and animals increases the occurrence of plague; trades in animals, animal products and byproducts are responsible for Mad Cow Disease; and destruction of ecological balance by human actions increases the incidence of Anthrax, Rickettsial Pox, Psittacosis, Japanese Encephalites, Yellow Fever, etc. About 35% of cattle in dairy farm are infected with Bovine Tuberculosis in Bangladesh. Buffalo, goat, cat, pig, rodent, and other wild animals are attacked with this disease. In Bangladesh Tetanus and Rabies are two common zoonotic diseases. Bangladesh has achieved considerable progress in adopting programmes against these diseases. [Md Sohrab Ali]

[[Category:Health Sciences]]

[[bn:পশুপাখিবাহী রোগ]]

Zoology Education and Research

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'''Zoology Education and Research''' see [[Fauna|fauna]].

[[Category:Education]]

[[bn:প্রাণিবিজ্ঞান শিক্ষা ও গবেষণা]]

Zoological Society of Bangladesh

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'''Zoological Society of Bangladesh''' a non-political scientific association of the zoologists, established in 1972. Initially after the [[War of Liberation, The|war of liberation]] in 1971, 53 zoologists representing most of the institutions of the country arranged a convention on 12 February, 1972 to form the society. In about two months' a constitution was framed and the Bangladesh Pranibijnan Samity or the Zoological Society of Bangladesh (ZSB) was formally inaugurated on 16 April 1972. The principal objective of the society is to promote the science of zoology in all its branches, both pure and applied, and to coordinate between the society and other international organisations. The office of the society is located at the Department of Zoology, [[University of Dhaka|university of dhaka]].

An elected council consisting of 24 members including a President, 3 Vice-Presidents, a General Secretary, 3 Regional Secretaries, and a Treasurer looks after the activities of the society.

Any science graduate of any nationality having interest in animal sciences may apply for membership. At present the membership stands at about 845 with 65 life members, 78 fellows, and 2 honorary fellows.

The society regularly publishes biannual journal Bangladesh Journal of Zoology and a popular Bangla Bulletin Shankhachil. The journal has an Editorial Board including an Editor-in-Chief and 5 members. The society arranges annual meetings and biannual conferences since its inception. It publishes proceedings following the national conferences. Recently the society published a book, Freshwater Fishes of Bangladesh, authored by AK Ataur Rahman. The society is maintaining its tradition of organising symposia and seminars on subjects of national interest.

The ministries of Education, and Science and Technology of the Government of Bangladesh make annual grants to the society to support its activities. The ZSB also has created a trust fund through donations of the members to ensure continued activities. [SM Humayun Kabir]

[[Category:Society/Associations]]

[[bn:বাংলাদেশ প্রাণিবিজ্ঞান সমিতি]]

Zoological Garden

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'''Zoological Garden''' (''chidyakhana'') public or private park where living animals are kept for exhibition, recreation and study. The menageries and aviaries of China, Egypt, and Rome were famous in ancient times. From the late medieval period many rulers had private menageries, some of which later formed the nucleus of public exhibits. Nearly all-large cities now have zoological reserves. Modern trends include breeding threatened animals in captivity, exhibiting animals in enclosures simulating their natural habitat rather than in cages (open-range zones or safari parks), and educating the public about principles of ecology.

In Bengal in the early 19th century, starting from 1801 there were four well-documented institutions in Calcutta, which could be called menageries or even zoos and a host of hearsay private collections.

The rich forests of Northeast India, Burma (now Myanmar) and other border countries, and the state of Bengal itself has its own rich forests to supply a very great diversity of animal life. Calcutta also was a gateway or seaport to the rest of southern Asia (even South India and Sri Lanka) and South East Asia which guaranteed a steady flow of animal life into Calcutta. These factors alone are sufficient to account for the phenomenon that four early and most interesting zoos or menageries originated in Calcutta. They were: 1. Barrackpore Menagerie, founded c 1801 and closed c 1879; 2. Wazir Ali Shah's menagerie founded c 1830's and wound up c 1880; 3. Marble Palace Zoo, founded 1854 and continuing but in decline; and 4. Alipore Zoo, founded in 1875, continuing and renovating.

[[Image:ZoologicalGardenMarblePalace.jpg|right|thumbnail|400px|Marble Palace Zoo]]
'''''The Marble Palace Zoo''''' (1854 to present) Rajah Rajendro Mullick Bahadur founded the Marble Palace Zoo in Chorebagan, Calcutta in 1854, and it still stands today in the centre of Kolkata city. The Rajah consciously and intentionally founded it as a public service for education and entertainment of the public. Rajah Rajendro Mullick was a student of natural history and the menagerie in his house contained birds and mammals collected from different parts of the world as well as India. The zoo had important (animal) collections, even before opening to the public. Mullick gave numerous animals to other institutions such as London Zoo. He also gave the Calcutta Zoo valuable animals and was honoured by having the first animal house named after him. Persons who admired and cared deeply about the dramatic and beautiful interesting creatures from around the globe nurtured Marble Palace Zoo. Much thought went into the keeping and display. The first cage ever to be constructed in the Marble Palace Zoo still stands, today holding rabbits and guinea pigs. Even the travelling cages of early days are still there.

'''''Alipore Zoological Garden''''' (1875 to the present) Although Barrackpore Menagerie continued, there were people even as early as 1841, who felt that Calcutta should have a proper zoo. The July 1841 issue of the Calcutta Journal of Natural History relates a proposal by Mr. Raleigh for the establishment of a Zoological Garden. In February 1873, Mr. L Schwendier, a member of the Council of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, detailed the scheme for the establishment of the Zoological Garden. The Society and the Agri-Horticultural Society approved his suggestions. The principal features of the original scheme were: (i) to provide recreation, instruction and amusement for all classes of the community; (ii) to facilitate scientific observations of the habits of animals, more especially those peculiar to tropical countries; (iii) to encourage the acclimatization, domestication, and breeding of animals and to improve the indigenous breed of cattle and farm stock; and (iv) to promote the science of Zoology by the interchange, import and export of animals.

[[Image:ZoologicalGardenAlipore.jpg|left|thumbnail|400px|Alipore Zoological Garden]]
An area of about 14 ha of land was allotted at Alipore by the Government of Bengal and development work started at the instance of Sir Richard Temple, the then Lt. Governor of Bengal. Mr. Schwendler readily donated his fine collection of specimens, and by December 1875 a sizeable menagerie was established with the spontaneous contributions from a number of donors. Raja Surjakanta Acharya Chaudhury of Mymensingh, and the Nawab Abdul Gani and Khajah Ahsanullah Khan Bahadur of Dacca were among the donors. King Emperor Edward VII, the then Prince of Wales, drove through the Garden on his way to Belvedere on the afternoon of 27 December, 1875 in the presence of the elite of Calcutta and inaugurated the zoo formally on the 1st of January, 1875. However, the zoo was made open to the public on the 1st of May 1876. Two young elephants and a leopard were sent to the Garden as a token of interest evinced by His Royal Highness who consented to be the patron of the garden. Ever since the starting of the zoo, the management of the Garden has been vested in an honorary committee appointed by the Government. At present the garden is run under the Alipore Zoological Garden (Management) Rules 1957 framed under the Bengal Public Parks Act, 1904 and the Managing Committee consists of 22 members (of which 10 are ex-officio members), nominated by the State Government.

Twenty thousand visitors a day is not unusual, and on special days the count reaches 100,000. The first attempt of modernisation of the zoo was made in 1957 when the authorities of the zoo constructed an open-air enclosure for tigers. The construction and opening of a freshwater aquarium in l977 added a new dimension to the Alipore Zoo. It was the first significant addition to the zoo after its centenary. It is one of the largest freshwater aquarium in the Eastern India having 17 large and 48 small tanks. It has now about 1500 freshwater fishes belonging to different species both exotic and indigenous.

A spacious (1064 sq m) new reptile house was established in 1979 for better housing and display of different reptiles. It has 48 exhibition cages arranged in circular fashion for display of different species of reptiles and a big central pool with a canopy of dome shaped wire netted roof for exhibition of crocodiles and gharials. The construction of new small carnivora house in 1981 with twelve large cages has provided a good opportunity for better exhibition and breeding of jaguar and other carnivores. An open air enclosure for bears having six dens have been constructed in 1985. An open-air enclosure for elephants was constructed in 1999. The most significant and striking achievement of Alipore Zoological Garden is the breeding of giraffe in 1988. The zoo is still holding a Giant Tortoise in its collection since 1875.

Principally the gate receipts, supplemented by annual grants received from the State Government maintain the garden. The garden, as it stands today stretches over 16 hectares of land with its charming layout of lawns, flower beds, lakes, bridges, avenues, animal houses, aviaries, waterways, plants, and shrubbery. [Md Anwarul Islam]

'''''Dhaka Zoo''''' the largest zoo in Bangladesh, situated at Mirpur about 16 km from the centre of Dhaka city. It is the national zoo under the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, started as a menagerie at the High Court Premises in Dhaka in 1964, and moved to its present location in 1974. In the same year it was ceremonially opened for public on June 23. The zoo occupies an area of about 75 ha. It has two lakes of about 13 ha, which receive thousands of waterfowls every year in winter.

[[Image:ZoologicalGarden.jpg|right|thumbnail|400px|Gate to Dhaka Zoo]]
The total number of vertebrate fauna in the zoo is about 2,150 in 191 species. Included in these animals, are about 551 mammals under 64 species, 1,543 birds under 90 species, 73 reptiles under 15 species, and about 104 aquarium fishes under 23 species. To attract visitors besides many fascinating animals, there are 15 tigers, 21 lions, 9 hippopotamus, about 200 monkeys, and 33 pythons. Moreover, some rare and interesting animals such as the rhea, peacock, zebra, elephant, African grey parrot, water buck, impala, emu, baboon, chimpanzee, gayal, black bear, tapir, mandrill, and estuarine crocodile provide additional entertainment to the visitors.

The zoo has a captive breeding programme and successfully bred the Royal Bengal Tiger, lion, leopard, primates, deer, and many birds. It has animal exchange programmes with many zoos of the world. As gifts Bangladesh government presented about 300 zoo animals to different organisations and personalities of different countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Iraq. The zoo regularly organizes various education programmes for students. The various ornamental features of the garden provides an aesthetic background to the animal houses, enclosures and aviaries, scattered all over the area, exhibiting indigenous fauna of Bangladesh as well as exotic specimens collected from different countries of the world.

About 3 million visitors visit the Dhaka Zoo every year. Except Sunday the zoo remains open on other weekdays from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm (October-March) and from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm (April-September). It also remains opens to the visitors for certain hours during government holidays. The beautiful natural environments of the zoo offer almost all recreational facilities to the visitors, a large part of which is constituted by the students and children. The zoo has an advisory committee headed by the Minister, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock.

Outside Dhaka there are 5 more zoos in the towns of Rangpur, Chittagong, Rajshahi, Comilla, and Khulna. The Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock runs the Rangpur Zoo, and the Khulna Zoo is looked after by armed forces. Local government authorities run the other 3 zoos. [M Shahidullah]

[[bn:চিড়িয়াখানা]]

Zoo

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'''Zoo''' see [[Zoological Garden|zoological garden]].

Zoffany, John

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[[Image:ZoffanyJohan.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Zoffany Johan]]
'''Zoffany, John''' (1733-1810) an artist of originality and depth. John Zoffany earned great reputation as a painter in Europe, was decorated with honours by many contemporary professional organisations in Vienna, Rome, and London. He came to Calcutta in search of fortune. Though a great artist, Zoffany could never overcome his poverty by his art activities in Europe. European artists in Bengal, who returned home with great fortune, motivated Zoffany to come to Calcutta (1783) to make fortune. Painters were in great demand in India.

The Indian princes, zamindars, merchants were keen to sit before European painters. Besides, the government also needed painters for pictorial record of things, which are now done by photographers.

Zoffany came to Calcutta and lived there until 1790. During the period he drew portraits of many members of nobility and painted scenes of dramas, bazaars, crowd, ball parties, hunting and shooting. Richard Earlom, the celebrated mezzotinto engraver (1743-1822), engraved some of his paintings.

He painted Sir [[Impey, Sir Elijah|elijah impey]], [[Hastings, Warren|warren hastings]] and the 'Last Supper' for an altar-piece in St. John's Church in Calcutta. In the history of modern Indian art, Zoffany occupies an important place. Fellow of the Royal Academy, the Society of Artists and the French Academy, Zoffany died in England on 11 November 1810. [Sirajul Islam]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:জোফানী, জন]]

Zircon

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'''Zircon'''' brown, green, pale-blue, red, orange, golden-yellow, grayish or colourless neosilicate mineral occurring in tetragonal prisms. It is the chief source of zirconium; the colourless varieties provide brilliant gemstones. Also known as hyacinth, jacinth, zirconite. It shows conchoidal fracture and cleavage visible in one direction. Its hardness is 7 on Moh's scale. It occurs in granites, syenites, schists and crystalline limestones. Zircon is occasionally radioactive because of the presence of thorium and uranium, replacing zirconium in the structure. The presence of thorium and uranium makes it a useful mineral for the age determination of such rocks.

''Table'' Reserve of zircon at different localities in Bangladesh.
{| class="table table-bordered"
|-
| Locality|| Raw Sand || Heavy Mineral || Zircon
|-
| Badarmokam (Cox's Bazar) || 1765000 || 411000 || 4932
|-
| Sabrang (Cox's Bazar) || 347558 || 68582 || 4184
|-
| Teknaf (Cox's Bazar) || 1939580 || 442291 || 28306
|-
| Shilkhali (Cox's Bazar) || 2756828 || 489714 || 33300
|-
| Inani (Cox's Bazar) || 729286 || 175476 || 10880
|-
| Cox's Bazar || 5119000 || 920000 || 23000
|-
| Maheshkhali Island (Cox's Bazar) || 4114230 || 784210 || 37112
|-
| Matarbari Island (Cox's Bazar) || 69030 || 15215 || 794
|-
| Nijhum Island (Noakhali) || 379337 || 96348 || 2052
|-
| Kutubdia Island (Cox's Bazar) || 404646 || 120000 || 3900
|-
| Kuakata (Patuakhali) || 2872486 || 831668 || 9647
|-
| Total || 20496981 || 4354504 || 158117
|}
''Source'' Badrul Imam, ''Bangladesher Khaniz Sampad'', 1996.

It is a principal source of zirconium and hafnium for industry and is extracted from [[Sand|sand]]s, the most important sources being beach deposits. In Bangladesh zircon is found as beach sand heavy mineral placer deposits on the sea beaches and coastal islands of Cox's Bazar, Chittagong, Noakhali and Patuakhali districts. It occurs mostly with fine to very fine sand grains. Generally the sands containing it are even finer than the sands containing Ilmenite, garnet and Rutile. The highest concentration of zircon, reported from Shilkhali, is 7%, the lowest concentration is 1% and the average is 4%. The reserve of zircon in Bangladesh is about 158,117 thousand ton (see table with figures in tons). [Sifatul Quader Chowdhury]

[[Category:Natural Sciences]]

[[bn:জিরকন]]

Zinda Pir’s Tomb Complex

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'''Zinda Pir's Tomb Complex''' situated less than half a kilometre to the west of Khan Jahan's tomb at Bagerhat. Zinda Pir's real name is said to be Ahmad Ali. Enclosed by an outer wall of 33.22m square with a triple entrance gateway in the north the complex consists of a single-domed tomb of the saint himself, a single-domed mosque and a number of brick-built graves ascribed to the family members of the Zinda Pir. It is locally said that the saint had his residence, now disappeared, to the north of the complex.

'''''The tomb''''' a brick-built square structure measuring 10.97m a side externally and is now in a very ruinous condition. The exterior angles of the building were emphasised with octagonal towers, bases of which are still in situ. The superstructure has completely crumbled down. Excepting the north wall, which is now preserved to a height of about 2.44m, the three other walls, once fallen down, have recently been repaired to a height of about 0.61m from the floor level. The walls are only 1.52m thick.

The building has three entrances on each of the east, south and west walls, while the north wall depicts a single archway having a large deep arched-niche on either side. The building must have been originally covered with a single dome on brick pilasters, two of which are still seen inside the north wall.

There is a brick cenotaph, under which lies buried the Zinda Pir, in the centre of the floor now cemented. The cenotaph, measuring about 4.88m by 3.66m consists of a triple terraced-podium and a keel-type top like those in the tomb of [[Khan Jahan|khan jahan]] and Pir Ali in the locality.

Since the building is in utter ruin only traces of ornamentation are now preserved here and there. The exterior surface of the north wall depicts two horizontal moulded bands at intervals, each being crowned with a row of blind crests like those in the six-domed mosque (c late 15th or early 16th century) nearby and the Godar Masjid (c Husain Shahi period) at [[Barobazar|bar]][[Barobazar|o bazar]], Jessore.

It is claimed that the Zinda Pir came to this area earlier than Khan Jahan. But the surviving architectural features of his tomb and mosque suggest otherwise. The octagonal shape of the corner towers, the light construction and the exterior surface decoration, as noticed in this building, started appearing much later in the Ilyas Shahi and Husain Shahi monuments of south Bengal. The present tomb building, on ground of stylistic similarity, may therefore be assigned to the later Iliyas Shahi or Husain Shahi period.

'''''The mosque''''' a single-domed square structure to the north-west of the tomb. Built in brick it measures, inclusive of the octagonal corner towers, 7.62m a side externally and 4.88m a side internally. The thickness of the walls is about 1.52m. The building has three arched-openings in the east and only one each on the north and south sides. Corresponding to the central opening, which is larger than the flanking ones, there is only one arched-mihrab inside the qibla wall with the usual rectangular projection on the exterior side.

The single brick dome has lost its upper part. The dome is supported on half-domed squinches springing from brick pilasters - two inside each wall. The cornice of the building has disappeared. Very little of the ornamentation of the mosque is now left. The octagonal corner towers have moulded bands at intervals. Vertical offsets and recesses variegate the exterior surface of the mosque. The eight brick pilasters supporting the dome above are decorated with raised ornamental bands at intervals.

The single mihrab of the mosque depicts usual decoration in terracotta. The mihrab niche, which has a beautiful engrailed arch, is set within a rectangular frame. The semi-circular mihrab niche depicts rows of panels enriched with cusped arch motifs. The rectangular frame of the mihrab is filled with interlocking patterns. The upper part of the frame is topped over by a frieze of blind petals.

The mosque is stylistically similar to the tomb beside. It should therefore be dated to the same period, later Ilyas Shahi or Husain Shahi period. [MA Bari]

[[Category:Religions]]

[[bn:জিন্দাপীরের সমাধি কমপেক্স]]

Zila Parishad

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'''Zila Parishad''' see [[Local Government|local government]];[[Administrative Reforms| administrative reforms]].

[[bn:জেলা পরিষদ]]

Zenana Mission

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'''Zenana Mission''' short for the 'Ladies' Association for the Support of Zenana work and 'Bible women' in India, in connection with the Baptist Missionary Society', established in England in 1867. It was formed as an auxiliary branch of the Baptist Mission Society, a Protestant society founded in England in 1792 for the purpose of missionary work overseas (the Serampore trio William Carey, [[Marshman, Joshua|joshua marshman]] and William Ward were the first overseas missionaries of the BMS). The function of this body was to send Christian women missionaries to India to do proselytising work by becoming peripatetic governesses to women of the upper classes who were otherwise inaccessible to missionaries. In 1880 the Zenana Mission added medical work to its ministry and came to be called the Zenana Bible and Medical Mission.

Zenana is a Persian word meaning 'woman'. The term is also used to denote the private part of a household that is reserved exclusively for women. Zenana and Zenanamahal are interchangeable terms used for women or women's quarters. The upper classes of both Muslim and Hindu communities took pride in preserving the purity of their women by means of such seclusion. Thus girls from these families did not attend the schools established by the missionary societies. This posed a problem of proselytisation among the upper classes. The problem was tackled by sending women missionaries as peripatetic governesses to the homes of persons wishing to give their female wards an English education. Thus, under missionary initiative, the old tradition of home teaching gained the new cognate 'zenana education'. Zenana work is thought to have begun in Jessore of Eastern Bengal by Mrs. John Sully in the early 1840s, although there is some confusion about the exact date. The peripatetic governesses were assisted by local converts, mostly from the lower classes, who were called 'Bible Women'.

The zenana education scheme complemented government and private efforts to spread female education and enjoyed government patronage after the Indian Education Commission of 1882, popularly known as the Hunter Commission, recommended that peripatetic governesses may receive grant-in-aid. The pioneering work of the Zenana Mission in Bengal prompted almost all Christian missionaries of various denominations to take up zenana education in their pursuit of conversion, thus increasing demand for women missionaries in the second half of the nineteenth century. By the turn of the 20th century there were about forty such mission organizations working in India.

The other Societies engaged in proselytizing the women of Bengal through imparting education were: Society for Promoting Female Education in the East, established in 1834; Ladies' Society for Female Education, Free Church of Scotland, established in 1837; Women's Union Missionary Society, established in 1861; Baptist Female Missionary Society, established in 1870; LMS Ladies' Committee for Missions in India and China, established in 1875; Church of England Zenana Missionary Society, established in 1880.

The missionaries failed to achieve their goal of winning over the womenfolk by giving them vernacular and English education so as to enable them to question the validity of 'heathen' belief and social practices. The Hindu revivalism of the late nineteenth century and the rise of nationalist feelings forced the missionaries to retreat into the background. Economic stringiness during WWI and the changed global socio-political environment of the post- World War I era also weakened Christian missions. The government recognized the futility of peripatetic zenana education tours and abolished the system in 1933. [Asha Islam]

[[bn:জেনানা মিশন]]

Zenana

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'''Zenana''' a Persian term originating from zan or 'woman'. Zenana is primarily a Muslim social institution under which a separate apartment is assigned to women members and women guests and visitors to the family. More simply, male and female members of the family work and interact and relax in separate spaces within the family precinct during working hours of the day. Women members themselves are also euphemistically called zenana.

It is a system of keeping womenfolk secluded from the male members of the family not only on social and religious grounds but also on the ground facilitating day to day work. Under the zenana system, men and women work in separate spaces within the family and its men and women members are entrusted with separate activities. The system is also known as andarmahal/antapur. Zenana is closely related to [[Purda|purda]]. What is zenana within the precinct of the family is purda in the larger setting of the society. Zenana system became particularly popular in Bengal after the region came under Muslim rule from the early 13th century. During the Sultani and Mughal periods, the Muslims, particularly of extraneous origins, strictly practiced zenana, and influenced by them, the high caste Hindu families and local Muslims also started practicising the zenana system.

Until late nineteenth century, zenana was a social and religious practice both among Muslims and Hindus. It was the Brahma Movement which first attacked the zenana system for Hindu families. The Brahma women began to work and intermix within the family and later they even came out of home without wearing veils. But the Muslim society, particularly of ashraf classes, maintained the system until very recent times. Modernism, urbanization, rise of middle classes, social mobility, empowerment of women, and other forces, including the housing system in urban areas, led to the decline of the zenana institution from the early 20th century. But in the rural areas, where housing system is largely unchanged still, the system is quite operative even now. [Sirajul Islam]

''See also'' [[Harem|harem]];[[Purda| purda]].

[[bn:জেনানা]]

Zamindari Association, The

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'''Zamindari Association, The''' reckoned to be the first political association of modern India. Formally launched in Calcutta in March 1838, it was renamed the Landholders' Society shortly afterwards. Landed magnates like Raja [[Deb, Radhakanta|radhakant dev]], [[Tagore, Prince Dwarkanath|dwarkanath tagore]], Prasanna Kumar Tagore, Rajkamal Sen and Bhabani Charan Mitra were its leading members. The promotion of landholders' interests through petitions to government and discreet persuasion of the bureaucracy was its professed object. Among its aims were securing a halt to the resumption of rent-free tenures and an extension of the [[Permanent Settlement, The|permanent settlement]] of land all over India, including the grant of lease of waste land to their occupants. The demand for reform of the judiciary, the police and the revenue departments was also on its agenda.

To attain its aims and objectives, the Society maintained close contact with the bureaucracy in Calcutta, established links with the British India Society of London and appointed its President, George Thompson, the Landholders' Society's agent in London.

With its distinctive mark of loyalism, the Landholders' Society was an exclusive aristocratic club of native [[Zamindar|zamindar]]s and compradors. Membership of the club was also extended to non-official Britons engaged in trade and commerce in Bengal. It was beyond the means of ordinary [[Raiyat|raiyat]]s to become its members. The Landholders' Society failed to take root in areas outside the Bengal Presidency, where the Permanent Settlement was not in vogue. With its limited field and range of activity, its only achievement was the concession it had extracted from government in the form of exemption of Brahmottara (land donated for the services of Brahmins and temples), to the extent of ten bighas, from rent. The Landholders' Society may be said to have inaugurated the new course of modern institutional politics in India.

The Landholders' Society did not endure long. It became inactive around 1842, becoming almost moribund by 1843, although maintaining a precarious existence till 1850. It was superseded by the [[Bengal British India Society|bengal british india society]]. [BR Khan]

[[Category:Society/Associations]]

[[bn:জমিদার সমিতি]]

Zamindar Family of Teota

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'''Zamindar Family of Teota''' was one of the large landholders based in Teota of manikganj district. Founded by one Panchanan Chaudhuri, born (c. 1740) into the Dasgupta family of Shaitghar-Teota in western Manikganj, the 'Sankars'; (the family middle name) were a relatively progressive, enlightened and unostentatious zamindar family. A number of its members made notable contributions to public life at all Bengal level.

The Teota zamindari comprised a number of estates spread out in the districts of Dhaka, Faridpur and Pabna, and Dinajpur along with some small properties in Rangpur and Burdwan. In 1914, the Dinajpur properties alone were valued at over Rs 11 lakhs. The estate paid over Rs. 60,000 in annual government revenue, and was managed by educated and trained officials. It would also appear that this estate was comparatively generous towards its employees – among other things, it paid a 'dearness allowance';, and took care of the medical expenses and 'living costs'; of its staff. The head office/ manager';s office was at Teota, and the estate was broadly divided into a few circles, each having a number of ''kachharis'' under it. The Teota zamindari remained undivided for almost a hundred and fifty years. By 1920, however, it had been amicably partitioned into the eight anna Teota Joy Sankar Estate, and other smaller shares. The zamindari ended with the abolition of zamindari system, and the acquisition of the estates by the government, under the provisions of the [[east bengal state acquisition]] [[and tenancy act]] of 1950.

Panchanan Chaudhuri, the founder of the family, began his 'career'; away from home, in Dinajpur. His earliest investments, it seems, had been in the tobacco trade, in which he flourished. With the profits earned from his lucrative business, he soon started to invest in land when a land market was created under the operation of the Permanent Settlement. He acquired his earliest properties in the Dinajpur region. Some time later, he returned to his ancestral village, and established himself as the first zamindar of Teota. A devout vaisnab, it was also during his time that 'Sridhar'; came to be the 'family-god';, Panchanan being the first 'sebaiyat';. He lived till ninety-three, and saw in his own lifetime the zamindari maturing into one of the largest in Eastern Bengal.

Very little is known about Panchanan Chaudhuri';s only son, Kali Sankar, who died very young, in his early thirties, but left behind two sons – Joy Sankar and Tarini Sankar (born, 1800s-1810s). Both of them were brought up to be 'traditional'; aristocrats (of the 'Nawabi Bengal'; mould), the younger Tarini Sankar having even been sent to Murshidabad for his education. However, he did not have a long life, and died in his thirties, and was survived by Shyama Sankar (later [[raja shyama sankar ray bahadur]] of Teota) and Pran Sankar.

Joy Sankar considerably augmented the inherited properties. He undertook such welfare activities as the digging of ponds and the construction of roads, besides generously maintaining the 'atithi-sala'; (guest house) at Teota set up by his grandfather. He, however, decided to renounce his family and his worldly possessions, and left for Puri – one of the best destinations for a practising vaisnab – leaving his two minor sons (Parbati Sankar and Hara Sankar) under the care of their mother and grandmother. It was there that he died shortly afterwards (c 1860). His sons later built a 'dharamsala'; in his memory at Gaya (in Bihar), and also made the necessary initial arrangements for a 'math'; to be founded at the site of his cremation in Puri.

The next generation of the family saw a marked shift towards the metropolis. Although the (first) Calcutta residence of the family had been built at 50, Darmahutta Street (now Maharshi Debendra Road) in the Pathuriaghata area in the 1820s, it was only from the sixties that male members of the family began to live in the city for extended periods. The ladies of the family left the village much later, in the 1880s or 1890s, when a new, more sprawling residence was built at 44, European Asylum Lane. That apart, the family also had a number of residential houses elsewhere. The Teota rajbari in Benaras (there were two, in fact) have been immortalised by [[bibhutibhushan bandyopadhyay]]';s novel, and subsequently by the [[satyajit ray]] film, '''Apar''''a''''jit''''a''';.

The eldest among the four cousins of this generation, Shyama Sankar Roy, was a noted philanthropist, an enterprising landlord who made numerous attempts at improvements and innovations in agriculture, and a Theosophist. He was conferred the personal title of 'Raja'; in the 1877s. [[rai parbati sankar chaudhuri]] was also an 'imaginative'; zamindar. Among other things, he introduced the system of co-operative grain banks (''dharmagol''''a'') within the zamindari, and was one of the founders of the [[indian industrial association]]. Hara Sankar Ray, who was a Presidency College graduate and had a degree in law, was an honourary magistrate (of Teota). The next generation saw yet another shift, with many of the cousins being sent to British universities for their first degrees and legal training at the Inns of Court, although only one of them, Dr Kumar Sankar Ray, turned out to be a 'professional'; in later life. KS Ray, a non-practising barrister and a philanthropist, was prominently involved in Congress electoral politics and represented Bengal (along with a few others) at the Council of States in New Delhi in the 1930s and 40s. The best-known names in the generation were however: the politician, [[kir]][[On sankar roy]], and [[kumud sankar ray]] (Dr KS Ray), the medical luminary and Swarajya-Congress leader.

The family seat was at Teota – an expansive complex, close to the bank of Jamuna, comprising a maze of courtyards and buildings, the earliest ones dating from the early nineteenth century, and the most recent from the early 1900s. The remarkable Navaratna adjoining the ''r''''a''''jb''''a''''ti'', built in honour of the family god and used during the 'Dol'; festival, is among the tallest and most elegant ones of its kind. The 'High/ Entrance School'; in the village, called Teota Academy, founded by the Teota Zamindar Family in the 1880s was – apart from the town school – for a long time the only one in Manikganj sub-division, now a district. The school also had a 'boarding'; for resident scholars, and its students used to stay at the 'Bahir-bari'; of the Calcutta residence of the Sankars when appearing for the University matriculation and other examinations. Besides this, there was a 'pathsala'; and a charitable dispensary maintained by the estate. Also, Teota was one of the very few places in the district having a sitting honorary magistrate and a 'bench';.

The big structures of the zamindar family still survive though abandoned and left uncared since 1957. These are now occupied by squatters. Structurally, the magnificent Teota buildings carry the spirit and technique of the blends of Mughal and European architecture. [R Roy] [Roy, R Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata]

[[bn:তেওতা জমিদার পরিবার]]

Zamindar

2021-06-17T19:40:57Z

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'''Zamindar''' The term zamindar (from the Persian zamin or land, and dar which is an inflexion of the verb dashtan, denoting to have, hold or possess) has passed into the historical vocabulary of medieval India to signify the superior landed interest. Zamindars during the Mughal period came to denote all rent, receivers above the actual cultivators. They were merely possessors of proprietary right in the collection of rent but not in land. The holders of land on the other hand were the [[Raiyat|raiyat]]s (peasants) in whose names jamabandis or rent-rolls were prepared. In this sense zamindars were mere farmers of revenue - intermediaries between the government and the inferior revenue farmers, excluding the huzuri (independent) talukdars who paid revenues straight to the khalsa (exchequer) and the peasants.

The appellation zamindar, a straightforward translation from the current native terms bhuiyan or bhupati, signifies hereditary landholder. The Mughals fashioned the existing land tenure into a new mechanism to serve their economic and political interests. However, the traditional power structure and modes of production were little affected. The zamindari institution as it developed under the Mughals lacked uniformity in its characteristics, even in the [[Subah|subah]] of Bengal, Bihar and [[Orissa|orissa]] itself. In Bengal, unlike some parts of India, land was not directly controlled by the Crown. [[Akbar|akbar]]'s Land Regulation System (1582), that aimed at direct settlement with the individual cultivators, was not feasible in the distant province of Bengal for various reasons, including peculiar geographical and climatic conditions. In pre-modern Bengal land was not only a factor of production, but also a status symbol and a source of social and political influence. Hence land control offered manifold prospects to all aspirants.

With the Mughal conquest of Bengal zamindar became a generic title embracing people with different kinds of landholdings and rights that ranged from the autonomous or semi-independent chieftains to the peasant-proprietors. The independent or semi-independent chieftains, humbled or befriended, became peshkashi (tribute-paying) subordinate allies keeping their administrative autonomy virtually unimpaired. The rest were mostly mal-wajibi (land revenue paying) who collected revenue for the Mughals. Unlike the autonomous or frontier chiefs, the hereditary status of the rest of the zamindar class was circumscribed by the Mughal government, and the heir depended to a certain extent on the pleasure of the sovereign. They were removable for insurgency or failure to pay the stipulated revenue. In return for their services, they enjoyed perquisites, khilats (robes of honour), and titles depending upon their status, resources and some other factors.

In pre-modern India, civil administration mainly revolved round the management of revenue affairs. Hence the assignment of land carried with it a host of administrative responsibilities. Zamindars were required to prepare details of revenue assessment, collect rent from the peasants and remit it to the state authorities and were also obliged to assist the imperial officers in the peace-keeping of the locality and to supply troops whenever needed. The superior landed interests who derived their strength and authority partly from the share of the produce and partly from their traditional superior position in the locality were well-suited to perform the state functions reposed in them by the imperial [[Sanad|sanad]]s.

Though the basic rights and duties of zamindars remained the same until the introduction of the [[Permanent Settlement, The|permanent settlement]] (1793), some changes were occasionally brought in the structure of land control system to suit the needs of the ruling elite. Thus, the Todarmal Settlement (1582) which had initiated the zamindari system in the far-flung subah of Bengal continued till 1658 when some vigour was put into it by the revenue settlement of Subahdar [[Shah Shuja|shah shuja]] (1657), followed by Subahdar Murshid Quli's mal-zamini (land revenue) system in 1722. To achieve the goal of maximisation of public revenue and its punctual remittance, Murshid Quli divided the province into 13 chaklahs (administrative divisions) instead of the previous 34 sarkars and placed the smaller zamindars under the jurisdiction of chaklahdars who were none other than the larger zamindars. Chaklahdars, installed as stewards over their juniors were officials, not owners, to ensure an efficient collection of revenues. But the policy of making the principal zamindars immediately responsible to the khalsa for the imperial share of the revenue added to their traditional power and position. In addition, various government assignments offered to the promising zamindars provided wider scope to enhance their standing in the court and furtherance of their own cause. The process of change from revenue-managers to landlords was complete by the middle of the 18th century.

The foremost duty of zamindars was the collection and punctual remittance of the revenue and in most cases, it is this pivotal role that determined their relationship with the government. The sanad conferring zamindari rights obliged zamindar to 'conciliate and encourage the raiyats and promote the advancement of cultivation, the improvement of the country, and the increase of its produce'. The revenues to be paid by zamindars were of three sorts: (1) the mal, made up of rents from arable land and uncultivated lands containing woods, groves, marshes and ponds; (2) the sair, the next important source of revenue that consisted of tolls and excise collected on river traffic and markets and of fees paid by the various service classes; and (3) baze-jama in the form of fines, forfeitures and marriage fees. The stipulated amount to be paid by zamindars was decided upon neither by a proper measurement of land nor by an assessment of the produce thereof, but by a sort of summary assessment known as nasaq. Zamindars paid a fixed sum which, however, was subject to arbitrary increase by the Nawab, though the power was seldom exercised. The revenue demand on the mal-wajibi zamindars was fixed on arable lands. Zamindars obliged to reclaim the wastelands and forests were empowered to dispose them of. The wastelands, extensively used as charity and religious endowments, created under-tenure holders of various denominations. The reclaimed land, often passed by the name of khamar; the produce of which was shared by the tillers and zamindars, formed a permanent source of additional income to zamindars. In large zamindaris the rentals were usually much lower than their real value. The government being aware of the fact levied occasional [[Abwab|abwab]]s or cesses on zamindars.

While the revenue demand on zamindars was fixed by the rent-roll, the rental burden on an individual raiyat was assessed by zamindars. The scant information available renders it difficult to ascertain the exact rate of rent. As man-land ratio was always in favour of man, zamindars could not afford to be oppressive on their raiyats. To keep them on the estate, zamindars found it to their interests to protect the rights and traditional privileges of the raiyats.

All categories of zamindars under the Mughals were required to perform certain police, judicial and military duties. With elements of both fiscal and political power at their disposal, zamindars exercised enormous local influence that made them the most undisputed potentates within the bounds of their territories. However, a full-fledged police system did not develop in rural Bengal during the period and hence some revenue staff were simultaneously entrusted with police duties. For instance, the gram-saranjami paiks who were employed primarily to assist zamindars in the collection of rents and guard the crops on the fields, were also made responsible for apprehension of thieves and robbers and preservation of peace, law and order in public places such as hats and bazaars, and fairgrounds. The regular police forces of big zamindars were organised and controlled within a system of thanas which were the largest police units, and under these came the smaller posts known as chaukies or pharies. In the heyday of the Mughals, the faujdar retained supreme authority over the thanas, nominally placed under the zamindari control. In the nawabi Bengal the thanas gradually fell under the control of the monopolistic zamindari estates.

The territorial zamindars had judicial powers. Naturally, judge-magistracy, as an element of state authority conferred status with attendant power, which really made them the lords of their domains. They held regular courts, called zamindari adalat. The courts fetched them not only power and status but some income as well by way of fines, presents and perquisites. The petty zamindars also had some share in the dispensation of civil and criminal justice. The chaudhuris, who were tiny zamindars in most cases, had authority to deal with the complaints of debts, thefts and petty quarrels and to impose paltry fines. Having no penal establishments, the smaller zamindars would refer the serious cases meriting confinement or capital punishments to the nearby Qazi or thanadar. In caste disputes, the high caste zamindars of good reputation were the most desired arbiters. But some prime zamindars, though low in caste ladder were seen to decide caste disputes under the dictates of exigencies. In fact, when the local [[Panchayet System|panchayet]] (council of elders) failed to satisfy the aggrieved party, appeals were lodged to zamindars. Although the zamindari bichar (trial) was easily accessible, speedy and often cheap, the custom of vesting both executive and judicial functions in one person had its inherent weaknesses. Some zamindars might turn out tyrants to the tenantry by taking the advantage of local autonomy. To obviate such prospect, the government always kept vigilance on the activities of individual zamindars.

Zamindars, specially the principal ones, were required to furnish military assistance to the faujdars or military governors stationed at the faujdari circles with a limited number of troops and drought animals in the event of serious rebellions or external invasions. Since the Mughals did not maintain a large standing army, they had to depend heavily on the indirect recruits of soldiers drafted from the territorial chiefs, clan or caste leaders. Some zamindars were even enrolled personally into the imperial service as mansabdars (nobles, holding military titles or ranks) and were remunerated in grants of [[Jagir|jagir]]s, proportionate to their status. Moreover, torrential monsoon rain in the flat and riverine Bengal rendered the cavalry and artillery almost useless except in the dry season. In such a situation, to fight against the rebellious chiefs, the Magh and Feringi pirates who had been intermittently raiding the southern and eastern frontiers of Bengal, the Mughals had to depend greatly on the military assistance of the zamindars who were obliged to provide the troops with victuals and other daily necessaries and to cut off supplies to the enemies of the government. The great territorial zamindars were empowered to keep armed establishments and construct forts with a view to defending their territories, protecting [[Agriculture|agriculture]], [[Trade and Commerce|trade and commerce]], ensuring the safe despatch of the revenues and keeping the raiyats under control. But the erosion of the imperial authority and the subsequent unsettled condition of the subah considerably weakened the nawab's hold on the landed gentry, who changed their loyalties as the tide of conflicts between the nawab and the Marathas or the nawab and the English [[East India Company, The|east india company]] flowed and ebbed.

Zamindars developed a system of zamindari management of their own through their privileged hereditary position and built up their courts and a style of private life vying with each other in pomp and grandeur. The landed aristocracy of the pre-British period included few absentee zamindars. Those who retained their official position as qanungos or chowdhuris were zamindars of the same locality. Consequently, the social life and public activities of the landed class were usually confined within the bound of their 'little kingdoms'. Their luxurious lifestyle boosted local crafts and small-scale industries like fine quality cotton textiles, exquisite silks, jewellery, decorative swords and weapons. Again, the extravagance of the prime zamindars in socio-religious festivities helped in no less degree the circulation of wealth in the society. Their darbars (courts) were modelled after the nawabs', and the Mughal dress, food, art and architecture were emulated which paved the way for a synthesis between the Turko-Persian and the indigenous cultures.

Zamindars under the Mughals were, in fact, more the public functionaries than revenue collecting agents. Although zamindaris were allowed to be held hereditarily, the holders were not considered to be the proprietors of their estates. The zamindari estates, which were never divisible between the successor of the incumbents or transferable to others, were then not inherited but obtained by a successor of the deceased incumbent with a fresh sanad from the government. The sarkar or government had always reserved the right to cancel or forfeit such sanads any time. A sanad was a charter of inviolable rights and responsibilities on the part of the zamindar. A zamindar continued his status through good conduct, not through any right. A failure of revenue payment punctually did not lead automatically to foreclosure of the zamindari right to the state unless it was deliberately done contumaciously or through any conspiratorial motive. A zamindar could seek relief from the government when raiyats failed to pay revenue due to natural disasters or any other factor beyond their control.

Despite the cooperation and services rendered by the zamindar class to the causes of the Mughal government, the inherent clash of interest between the two remained unresolved. The erosion of the imperial authority following the death of [[Aurangzeb|aurangzeb]] (1707), the succession wars for the vice regal throne, the wrangling of parties at the nawab's court coupled with the entry of the East India Company in the political arena of Bengal, increased the dependence of the [[Nawab|nawab]]s on zamindars. The big zamindars, in league with the emerging banking class and the Company entered the mainstream of politics, aligning themselves with the contenders for the nawabi. Thus, the role of zamindars impacted profoundly on political and financial turmoil. With the government inaction buttressed by the inefficiency and corruption of the officers, the powers of zamindars continued to grow unabated till the transfer of the [[Diwani|diwani]] (revenue authority) to the East India Company in 1765.

The zamindari institution of the Mughal times had undergone revolutionary changes under the colonial regime when zamindars lost many old rights and privileges and gained many new, and when the modified institution was exposed to constant metamorphosis until its formal dissolution in 1951.

The acquisition of the diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa by the East India Company was the first step towards the new status of zamindars. But until 1772, when zamindars were replaced by revenue farmers, the institution did not suffer much structural changes. Naib Diwan Syed Mohammad [[Khan|reza]] [[Khan|khan]], who managed diwani administration on behalf of the Company, was a strong believer in the Mughal Revenue System, and hence during his administration zamindars could somehow sustain their status, though the period was already marked by erosion of zamindari powers. Without a formal declaration, zamindars were shorn of their traditional powers and privileges and reduced to mere revenue collectors.

Warren [[Hastings, Lord|hastings]], first Governor (1772-1774) and then Governor General in Council of the [[Fort|fort]] [[Fort|william]] in Bengal (1774-1785) assumed the Diwani administration into his own hands at the instruction of the court of directors, and sent Reza Khan, the naib diwan, behind bar. In the land control system, Hastings took a revolutionary measure by departing from the centuries-old revenue administration and replacing the established zamindars and [[Taluqdar|talukdar]][[Taluqdar|s]] by the highest bidding [[Ijaradar|ijaradar]]s or revenue farmers. For traditional zamindars, the measure was stunning indeed, and yet they did not resort to widespread rejection of the system because their wrath was much moderated ostensibly by holding out to them an unearned income of ten percent of the actual collection of revenue as malikana or so-called proprietary allowance. Hence, financially they were not losers at all, rather gainers, as they would receive more or less the same income without bearing the cost of revenue collection and without undergoing the drudgeries of rent collection.

But the farming system, known as Quinquennial Settlement, did not yield the desired effect. The revenue farmers, who mostly came from trade and commerce, had no previous experience about [[Land Management|land management]]. In their desperate attempts in collecting rent for paying government revenue and also for making a profit out of their investment in the farming speculation, the farmers in general resorted to rack-renting. Many of them were compelled to do so to save themselves from ruin, because their speculation had no relation with the actual resources of the land. The raiyats, being rack-rented and oppressed, resorted to desertions and disturbances. The revenue collection showed downturn and uncertainty. The general economic conditions of the country were declining fast.

In view of the ruinous effect of the farming system, the court of directors suggested to the Calcutta government to revert to the old zamindari system for revenue collection at the end of the Quinquennial Settlement. In 1777, the term of the farming system expired and according to the direction of the court, revenue settlements were made with zamindars for a term ranging from one to three years. In 1778-79, revenue settlements were made with zamindars again on short-term basis. But the process of decadence of zamindars and talukdars as a class, that started silently from the time of the acquisition of the diwani in 1765 and got heightened in the late 1770s, turned the landholders into an impoverished and ignorant class. They proved to be unable to respond to the new circumstances and adjust with them. It was found that zamindars got used to living with unearned income of the farming period and when they got the land settlements in their own names, they were found to have resorted to the same [[Ijara|ijara]] system. All large zamindars had divided their estates into numerous blocs and leased them to ijaradars. The change of 1778 did not, therefore, improve the situation. The declining trend of the economy could not be arrested and the revenue collection could not be made certain.

Under [[Pitt’s India Act, 1784|pitt’s india act]] of 1784 the Calcutta government enacted many rules and regulations with the object of reorganising the colonial state on a permanent basis. Attempts were made to make settlement of land with zamindars and frame durable rules and regulations to govern the state efficiently and to the benefit of both the rulers and of the ruled. lord cornwallis was sent as governor general with the positive instructions to make the new kingdom strong and stable economically and politically. Under the Act and under the instructions of the court of directors, Cornwallis was obliged to abandon the path of ruinous experiments and make permanent settlement with zamindars, talukdars and other landholders of the country.

Cornwallis concluded the permanent settlement with zamindars in March 1793. The status of zamindars and their roles came to be very different under the Permanent Settlement. The landholders of all categories were declared proprietors of land. As proprietors, zamindars were to pay government revenue without any alteration for all time to come. The zamindari property, like any other property, could be freely transferred or mortgaged without the necessity of taking any sanction from the authorities. The zamindari right was also inheritable among the successors of zamindars according to Hindu and Muslim laws of succession. Zamindars got these proprietary rights entirely gratis. In return for these rights and privileges, zamindars were required to pay revenue to government absolutely punctually according to the contract, otherwise, their lands were made liable to be sold in public auction. Zamindars were formally stripped of all state powers and privileges they had been enjoying traditionally as local potentates. Traditional zamindari adalat (court) was banned. The zamindari right to sayer collection was abolished and all sayer mahals (hats, bazaars, ganjes, octrois, fisheries) were resumed and brought under direct rule of the district collector. In the eyes of law, zamindars and raiyats were made equal.

Predictably, zamindars responded to the permanent settlement very sharply. They accepted the settlement because there was no alternative before them. They were asked either to accept the settlement or to surrender the right in lieu of an annuity. Zamindars, by and large, tried to swallow the pill of the [[Permanent Settlement, The|permanent]] [[Permanent Settlement, The|settlement]], because they saw with horror that those who resisted the new system were ruthlessly suppressed.

To zamindars, the most invidious aspect of the permanent settlement was the revenue sale law, which they called euphemistically the Sunset Law. The law provided that the public revenue was to be paid at the district collectorate in twelve kists (installments). If the payment of any installment fell in arrears, the district collector would realise it in the following month by selling the equivalent amount of land of the defaulter. Since the very beginning of the operation of the permanent settlement hundreds of zamindari estates were sold under the operation of the Sunset Law, which in effect led to the eclipse of a ruling family.

The rise of a new zamindar class at the expense of the older ones was in-built in the very mechanism of the Permanent Settlement. The authors of the system were conscious that the regulations of the Permanent Settlement, when set to operation, would create a competitive land market, which would operate in eliminating the weak and incapable zamindars from land control and infuse new blood into land ownership. It was anticipated that new men of capital and enterprise, who would enter land control through the operation of the Permanent Settlement, would be catalysts for changes in the agrarian landscape.

But unfortunately, in estate management, the new zamindars most of whom came from zamindari service, government jobs and trade and commerce were not fundamentally different from the old zamindars. While the traditional zamindars tended to show indolence and lack of motivation, the newcomers in land control were found to have been more eager in enhancing their income by increasing rent without making any capital investment in agricultural improvement.

The relation between zamindars and raiyats deteriorated progressively in the early part of the 19th century. The conflict between the two classes mainly originated from zamindari attempts of enhancing the established rent rate. The pressure of the permanent settlement, decline in zamindari income through rise in prices and many other factors including litigation, family feuds and fragmentation of the parent estates among successors, persuaded zamindars to enhance rent of raiyats. But raiyats were steadfastly resisting such attempts on the ground that zamindars had no right to change the pargana nirikh or established rate of rent. But zamindars refused to accept such demand and argued that as absolute proprietors of land they had the right to revise the rate of rent according to the fluctuation of prices and value of land. The consequence was growing peasant unrest and occasional uprisings in different parts of the country. The unrest led to the great anti-zamindari peasant uprisings in the 1870s including the Tushkhali Movement (1872-75), Pabna Uprising (1873), and Chhagalnaiya (Noakhali) and Munshiganj Uprising (1880-81).

All these peasant movements only indicated that there was considerable awareness among peasants of their rights in land. They very strongly asserted these rights which zamindars refused to accept and about which courts were giving contradictory verdicts. The customary rights of peasants were vaguely recognised in the [[Cornwallis Code|cornwallis code]] but these were never expressly defined. The widespread peasant discontents in the country led the colonial government to study the whole situation and take necessary measures to establish peace in the countryside. Another problem was the creation of hierarchic intermediate classes in land control. Most zamindars, particularly of the eastern Bengal districts, had created permanent intermediate tenures called madhyasvatvas ([[Hawla Tenure|intermediate]] [[Hawla Tenure|tenure]]), which had far removed zamindars from their raiyats. In-between zamindars and raiyats there were several degrees of interests one upon another all of whom drew their rental income from the same plot of land and from the same raiyat. Overburdened raiyats responded to such situation by desertion or organised resistance.

A Rent Commission was established in 1880 to study the agrarian situation and report to the government suggesting remedies. Based on its report (1883) the Bengal Legislative Council enacted the [[Bengal Tenancy Act 1885|bengal tenancy act]] 1885. The Act tried to define the rights and liabilities of all interests in land including various categories of raiyats, madhyasvatvas and landholders. Under this Act the powers of the superior landed interests to make arbitrary enhancement of rent were severely curtailed. This Act recognised the right of superior raiyats to transfer their holdings subject to payment of a namzari selami (registration dues) to the proprietor. The Act also recognised the rights of all intermediate interests. Zamindars lost the right to enhance rent without showing reasons. Under this Act they could raise rent only when they could prove that they invested capital in land development or that the prices had gone up. All these restrictions meant the serious curtailment of zamindari power. The legal recognition of special tenurial position of rich peasants and tenure-holders was a positive negation of the status accorded to zamindars under the regulations of the permanent settlement.

The twentieth century developments like Indian nationalism, politics of agitation, Muslim separate electorate and separatist politics, penetration of communist ideas, and the like had seriously undermined the social authority of the zamindar class which was politically moderate and loyal to British raj. Peasant politics was entirely against zamindari system. As most zamindars were Hindus, the Muslim peasantry, who formed the majority of the population in the countryside, was vehemently against zamindars. The zamindar-tenant relations so changed that all the leading political parties participating in the general elections of 1937 had made commitments that the zamindari system would be abolished if they were voted to power. Accordingly, the [[Bengal Provincial Muslim League|muslim]] [[Bengal Provincial Muslim League|league-krishak praja party]] coalition government constituted a commission to report as to the zamindari system. The commission, [[Floud Commission|floud commission]] as it was called, recommended for the abolition of the Permanent Settlement. But the post-war situation, communal strife and politics of partition obliged the government not to implement the recommendation of the commission. The zamindari system was finally abolished in Bangladesh under the [[East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act 1950|east bengal state acquisition and tenancy act]] of 1950. [Sirajul Islam and Shirin Akhter]

'''Biblography''' Shirin Akhtar, The Role of the Zamindars in Bengal 1707-1772, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh 1982; Sirajul Islam, The Permanent Settlement in Bengal: A Study of its Operation 1790-1819, Bangla Academy 1979; Ranajit Guha, A Rule of Property for Bengal: An Essay on the Idea of Permanent Settlement, Orient Longman 1981, first published 1963; FD Ascoli, Early Revenue History of Bengal and the Fifth Report, 1812, Oxford 1917.

[[bn:জমিদার]]

Zaman, Sultana

2021-06-17T19:40:57Z

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[[Image:ZamanSultana.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Sultana Zaman]]
'''Zaman, Sultana''' (1935-2012) actress, film producer, was born on 2 September, 1935 in [[Natore District|natore]] district. Her father, Syed Abdur Razzaq was an officer of the zamindar of Natore and Mother was Rahima Khatun. Her family name was Musammat Hosne Ara Sharifa Begum but she is popularly known as Sultana Zaman. She passed her childhood and adolescence in Natore town. Sultana Zaman passed SSC examination from Natore Girl's School, HSC examination' from Rajshahi College and then admitted in BA class. In 1956 she got married to Q M Zaman, the first chief cameraman of Film Development Corporation (FDC) of the then East Pakistan and the cameramen of numerous movie include the first Bangla full-length commercial film Mukh O Mukhosh (Face and Mask, 1956).

Sultana Zaman began her career in 1959 as one of earliest Bangali and Muslim actress through the film Matir Pahar which was produced by SM Parvez and directed by Mahiuddin. Later, she adopted her name as Sultana Zaman through the film Anek Diner Chena (1964) directed by [[Rahman, Ataur|khan ataur rahman]] (1928-1997).

Sultana Zaman, one of the influential actress of the 1950s and 1960s, acted in numerous films both in Bangla and Urdu languages such as Sonar Kajal (1962, Jointly directed by [[Sharafi, Kalim|kalim sharafi]] and [[Khan, AM Jahiruddin|jahir raihan]]), Chanda (1962, directed by [[Ehtesham|ehtesham]]), Zoar Elo (1962, directed by Abdul Jabbar Khan), Satrang (1965, directed by [[Lohani, Fateh|fateh lohani]]), Zanazani (1965, directed by Ali Mansur), Mala (1965, Mustafiz), Uzala (1966), Abar Banabase (1966), Rupban (1966), Mayurpabkhi (1968), Saptadibga (1968), Natun Diganta (1968), Maner Mato Bau (1969), Trisna (1978).

Alongside her acting in films she produced two films as Bhanumati (1969) and Chhadmabeshi. Besides, she was the presenter of the lyric program 'Chhayachhanda' in commercial service of Radio and acted on several Radio play such as Krtadaser Hasi,Tajmahal, Zafran.

Abu Jafar Ahmed, Assistant Cameraman and film producer of Film and Publication Department of Information Ministry, made a documentary on Sultana Zaman, titled Sultana Zaman-er Jiban O Karma Shirsak Pramanyachitra (Documentary on activities and life sketch of Sultana Zaman). Apart from featuring life and works on Sultana Zaman, the documentary also includes interviews of noted actor-actress as they speak of Sultana. The documentary includes short interviews of Shabnam, Razzak, Hasan Imam, Amzad Hossain and family member of Sultana Zaman.

In recognition of her contribution in film industry Sultana Zaman was honoured with numerous honours, such' as Chitrakash Award, National Film Award (2009), National Award (2011) by the Bangladesh Mahila Parishad. Sultana Zaman died on 20 May 2012 in Dhaka. [Shamima Akhter]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:জামান, সুলতানা]]

Zakaria, Mohammad

2021-06-17T19:40:55Z

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[[Image:ZakariaMohammad.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Mohammad Zakaria]]
'''Zakaria, Mohammad''' (1923-1993) actor and producer, was born in the district of Birbhum, West Bengal. He passed the matriculation examination from Sewri Benimadhab Institution. While studying for the Intermediate examination at Hetampur College he took a government job in the office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Company. Mohammad Zakaria was instinctively attracted to acting. In 1944, he first acted in Navanna, a play written' by [[Bhattacharya, Bijan|bijan bhattacharya]] and produced by' Indian People's Theatre Association of [[Calcutta|calcutta]].

Subsequently, he became associated with different theatre groups such as Bahurupi, Theatre Centre, Lokanatyam etc and became famous for his acting ability. This was quite unusual in contemporary Muslim society. Among the plays in which he acted with distinction are Ulukhagda (1950), Chhenda Tar (1952), Dashchakra (1952), Dharmaghat (1953), Raktakarabi (1954), Dakghar (1957), Aghatan Ajo Ghate (1961), Ek Peyala Coffee (1962), Psychotherapy, etc.

In 1956, at the invitation of [[Bulbul Lalitakala Academy|bulbul lalitakala academy]] (BAFA) Bahurupi came to Dhaka and staged [[Tagore, Rabindranath|rabindranath tagore]]’s Raktakarabi and [[Lahiri, Tulsi|tulsi lahiri]]’s Chhenda Tar.

In 1964, Zakaria came to [[Dhaka|dhaka]] from Calcutta and acted in two films directed by [[Raihan, Zahir|zahir raihan]] Bahana (1965) and Behula (1966) and in Syed Mohammad Parvez's film, Begana (1966).

In 1966, Mohammad Zakaria joined the Dhaka centre of Pakistan Television as a producer. This move helped him to use his talents for the stage, and to produce Radio and Television plays in Dhaka. In Dhaka, he first performed in [[Chowdhury, Munier|munier chowdhury]]'s Kabar (1972), a play produced by Theatre. He was one of the founding members of Theatre and also its vice-president. Major stage and TV plays he acted in subsequently include Subachan Nirbasane (1974), Chardike Yuddha (1976), Payer Aoyaj Paoya Yay (1976), Dui Bon (1978), Othello (1981), Macbeth (1983), Akhano Krtadas (1983), Pratibeshi and Idiot. His interpretation of the characters of 'Baba' (father) in Subachan Nirbasane, 'Pirsaheb' in Payer Aoyaj Paoya Yay and 'Mathurda' in Dui Bon earned him the admiration of many.

Zakaria introduced a distinct style of acting in the work he did from the 1940s to the 1980s. He became noted particularly by translating plays and writing creative essays on the theatre. He was felicitated and given enthusiastic receptions and prizes by various institutions for his literary and cultural achievements.

Among the prizes he received are the National Drama Festival Award (New Delhi, 1954), Ekushey Padak of Bangladesh Government (1981), Kazi Mahbubullah Zebunnesa Trust Medal (1983), Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy Prize (1978), Bangladesh Film Journalist Association Prize (1985), Sequence Award of Merit (1980), and Sammilita Sanskritik Jot Padak (1992). He was honoured in the Gunijan Sangbardhana of Dhaka Theatre (1981), a reception organised by Loknatya Dal (1991). In 1999, Theatre introduced the 'Mohammad Zakaria Memorial Medal' in his honour. [Anupam Hayat]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:জাকারিয়া, মোহাম্মদ]]

Zainuddin Ahmad Khan

2021-06-17T19:40:55Z

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'''Zainuddin Ahmad Khan''' naib nazim (deputy governor) of Bihar under Nawab [[Alivardi Khan|alivardi khan]] and Father of Nawab Sirajuddaula. He was the youngest son of Haji Ahmad, elder brother of Alivardi Khan. His real name was Mirza Muhammad Hashim. He was invested with the title of 'Khan' during the time of Nawab [[Shujauddin Muhammad Khan|shujauddin khan]]. Like his brothers [[Nawazish Muhammad Khan|nawazish muhammad khan]] and [[Sayed Ahmed Khan|sayed ahmed khan]], he contributed much in strengthening and infusing efficiency in administration and worked harmoniously with Alivardi Khan. Zainuddin married Alivardi's youngest daughter [[Amina Begum|amina begum]] (mother of [[Sirajuddaula|sirajuddaula]]), and after Alivardi's assumption of office as the nawab of Bengal, he was raised to the post of naib nazim of Bihar and was given the title of Haibat Jang.

During the time of Nawab Alivardi Khan, the Marathas conducted repeated raids and pillaged and sacked vast tracts of land in Bihar and Bengal. There was a large number of Afghans serving in the nawab's army. When the Marathas invaded in 1744 under Bhaskar Pandit, Alivardi Khan, in collusion with Mustafa Khan, the Afghan general in the Bengal army, treacherously killed Bhaskar along with most of his followers. The remaining Maratha army fled away for safety. After this Mustafa Khan expected that he would be remunerated by the nawab for his gallantry with the post of governorship of Bihar. When he was deprived of it, he revolted and an armed conflict became imminent. The revolted general stormed Mongyer and then made an assault on Patna. At the first instance Zainuddin defended the capital and put down the revolt. Subsequently Nawab Alivardi Khan arrived there with a huge army and chased the rebels out of Bihar.

Mustafa Khan again invaded Bihar and also instigated Raghuji Bhonsle to make an attack on Bengal. Zainuddin promptly repulsed the Afghan attack. Mustafa Khan was shot and killed. Raghuji next entered Burdwan and passed through Birbhum. His troops looted and plundered whatever they found on their way. Although Raghuji was driven back, his follower Mir Habib got a chance of entering Murshidabad and continued their plundering there. Finally Alivardi Khan was successful in pushing them back.

In 1748, in the wake of Ahmad Shah Durrani's invasion of the subcontinent, the Afghans were inspired to establish their rule in the eastern provinces by overthrowing Alivardi Khan. The Afghan ex-soldiers revolted, took the control of Patna city in their hand and murdered Zainuddin Ahmad in 1748. On hearing this heart-rending news, Alivardi Khan moved against them, crushed the insurgents with iron-hand and rescued Amina Begum, the widow of Zainuddin, with her two sons. [KM Karim]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:জৈনুদ্দীন আহমদ খান]]

Zainuddin, Sheikh

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[[Image:ZainuddinSheikh.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|''Saras'' Artist- Sheikh Zainuddin]]
'''Zainuddin, Sheikh''' an artist of the company period. He was one of the local artists who rose to prominence under European masters. He deserves a rank next to Shaykh Muhammad Amir of Karaya. In the late eighteenth century he worked under Lady Impey, the wife of Sir [[Impey, Sir Elijah|elijah impey]], Chief Justice of Calcutta Supreme Court. Among the three eminent artists she brought from Patna to make realist sketches of birds and animals of her private zoo, Zainuddin was the foremost. All the artists of Mrs. Impey were conversant with decadent Mughal Patna Qalam (pen) or style. When they came in contact with European patrons and artists they adopted European style and technique to keep themselves employed for earning livelihood. Most of these artists worked by using Mughal Patna Qalam and European technique side by side.

From 1777 to 1782 Sheikh Zainuddin worked on Whiteman art paper manufactured in England for his transparent watercolour sketches. For his tinted drawings and sketches he employed meticulous calligraphic strokes reminiscent of the works of Mughal Court artist Ustad Mansur. The works of Zainuddin breathe an arm of blending of traditional Mughal painting with an admixture of European style. His drawings of mountain-rats, hanging bats, parrots, storks etc serve as interesting Zoological studies and at the same time they have high aesthetic qualities. These are now preserved in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. [Nazma Khan Majlis]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:জয়নুদ্দীন, শেখ]]

Zafar Khan Ghazi Mosque and Dargah

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'''Zafar Khan Ghazi Mosque and Dargah''' situated at Tribeni in [[Pandua, Hughli District|hughli]] district, West Bengal, India, are considered to be among the earliest surviving Muslim monuments in Bengal. According to an inscription, the mosque is dated 698 AH/1298 AD. Tribeni (junction of three rivers viz, the Ganga, the Jamuna and the Sarasvati - hence the name) was an ancient holy place of the Hindus. The Muslims conquered it during the early phase of their conquest of Bengal.

[[Image:ZafarKhanGhaziMosquePlan.jpg|right|thumbnail|400px|Ground Plan, Zafar Khan Ghazi Mosque]]
The mosque is an oblong structure measuring 23.38m x 10.53m externally. It is the earliest surviving example of the brick-and-stone style introduced by the Muslims in Bengal in place of the traditional Hindu style of laying rectangular cut stones one upon another without mortar. The stones used in the mosque were originally materials from temples, as evidenced by figures of Hindu deities carved on some pieces. The original structure has suffered reconstruction a number of times.

There are five arched entrances in the east wall. Stumpy hexagonal stone piers support the arches. The mosque represents the multi-domed oblong type developed by the Muslims in Bengal in which the number of domes on the roof equals the number of entrances in the east wall multiplied by those on either side. The north and south walls have two doors each. There are thus ten domes roofing the mosque. The interior of the structure is broken into two longitudinal aisles and five short bays by means of stone pillars, creating ten equal compartments. The brick-built domes rest on stone pillars and pointed arches with brick pendentives at the corners.

The silhouette of the successive pointed arches has added to the spaciousness and grandeur of the mosque interior. Corresponding to the five entrances in the east, there are five mihrabs in the west wall contained within multifoil arches. The mihrab wall shows sparse decoration within panels. The cornice and the parapet of the structure are straight. The mosque follows the Bengali type with only the prayer chamber without court, riwaq and minaret. A significant feature of the mosque interior is that a brick wall up to the level of the arch-spring has closed the bay at each end, north and south, across the middle. These are the only parts of the mosque which show terracotta ornamentation. The southern part is in a fair state of preservation and shows a panelled composition. The central panel is broken into two halves vertically by means of rosettes within square frames - the lower depicting a swinging creeper with luxuriant leaf age and the upper two half-arch motifs with a finial in the thick of shrubs and foliage. The flanking panels are similarly disposed and ornamented. All the panels depict multifoil arches with finials. The vegetal motifs betray local influence and speak of the Muslim adaptive spirit.

The ornamentation of the northern bay wall is in ruins, but surviving traces show its dissimilarity from the southern. The composition here shows two small vertical panels each containing a multifoil arch with a finial from which hangs a chain ending in a round pendant. What is significant about these bay walls is that they are completely incongruous with the mosque interior but their ornamentation surprisingly resembles that in the [[Bagha Mosque|bagha mosque]] (1524) in Rajshahi district.

Only yards away to the east of the mosque, beyond an open courtyard, stand two square rooms aligned east-west side by side, the western housing two graves - those of Zafar Khan Ghazi and his wife and the eastern showing four graves on a masonry platform. The walls are built of old temple materials - rectangular stone pieces - and the rooms are without a roof and open to the sky. A rectangular shallow niche enters them through a central door in the north wall flanked on either side with a trefoil arch above. The northern door of the western room is made up of a Hindu frame as shown by carved Hindu figures. The eastern room shows sculptured scenes from the [[Ramayana|ramayana]] and the [[Mahabharata|mahabharata]]. There are other stone sculptures fixed at the plinth on the outer face. It is, however, surprising that the structure neither conforms to a Hindu temple nor to a Muslim tomb. What is probable is that it was built on a makeshift plan with reshuffled temple materials. The unsettled nature of Muslim occupation of the region at the time supports such a suggestion. [Muhammad Hafizullah Khan]

[[Category:Religions]]

[[bn:জাফর খান গাজী মসজিদ ও দরগাহ]]

Zafar, Sikander Abu

2021-06-17T19:40:53Z

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[[Image:ZafarSikanderAbu.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Sikander Abu Zafar]]
'''Zafar, Sikander Abu''' (1919-1975) litterateur and journalist, was born at Tentulia in Satkhira (greater Khulna) on 19 March 1919 where his grandfather Syed Alam Shah Hashemi had settled after coming from Peshwar in Pakistan. His full name is Syed Al Hashemi Abu Zafar Muhammad Bakht Sikander.

He passed Entrance examination (1936) from the neighbouring Tala B Dey Institute and passed Intermediate from Ripon College, Kolkata. He started his career in the military accounts section (1939) in Kolkata. He also worked with the Globe News Agency of Satyendranath Majumdar for some time.

Abu Zafar came to Dhaka from Kolkata in 1950 and began to work as a journalist for the Daily [[Nabajug, The|nabajug]], the [[Ittefaq, The|ittefaq]], the [[Sangbad, The|sangbad]] and the Millat. He founded and edited (1959-1970) a monthly magazine called [[Samakal, The|samakal]]. He also set up a printing press called Samakal Mudrayan and a publishing house named Samakal Prakashani in 1958.

Abu Zafar was one of the activists of the cultural movement that launched the concept of Bengali nationalism in East Bengal in the 1960’s. During the [[War of Liberation, The|war of liberation]] in 1971, he composed a number of lyrics of patriotic and revolutionary nature to encourage the people of his country. His song ‘Amader sangram chalbei’ (Our struggle must continue) inspired people during the liberation war.

Although Zafar is chiefly remembered as a poet, he was also proficient in prose. Noteworthy among his works are the, novels, Purabi (a certain musical note, 1941), Natun Sakal (New dawn, 1946), the short stories, Mati ar Ashru (Soil and tears, 1942), the collection of poems, Prasanna Shahar (Cheerful city, 1965), Timirantik (At the end of darkness, 1965), Bairi Brstite (In the pelting rain, 1965), Brshchik-Lagna (The scorpion-time, 1971), Bangla Chado (Leave Bengal, 1971), the plays, Siraj-ud-Daula (1965) and Mahakabi Alaul (1966), and a collection of songs, Malava Kaushik (1966).

His translated works include Yadur Kalas (Magical pitcher, 1959), Saint Luier Setu (The Saint Louis bridge, 1961), Rubayyat: Omar Khayyam (Quatrains of Omar Khayyam, 1966), etc. He was awarded the Bangla Academy Award (1966) for his plays and the Ekushey Padak (1984, posthumous). He died in Dhaka on 5 August 1975. He lies buried at Banani graveyard. [Golam Kibria Pinu]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:জাফর, সিকান্দার আবু]]

Yusufganj Mosque

2021-06-17T19:40:52Z

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[[Image:YusufganjMosque.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Yusufganj Mosque]]
'''Yusufganj Mosque''' is situated at village Yusufganj in [[Sonargaon Upazila|sonargaon upazila]] of [[Narayanganj District|narayanganj district]], about 500 meter to the west of the Mograpara crossing of the Dhaka-Chittagong highway and about 1000 meter to the east of Dargabari on the northern side of the road that leads to Mograpara. The mosque is now in a renovated condition, and although much of its original features have been lost, its antiquity can be traced back to the 15th century in view of it's having some characteristics of sultanate architecture.

The mosque is a square building measuring 9 meter a side in the exterior and 5.5 meter in the interior. There are three entrances on the east of which the central one is wider (1.2 meter wide), the side ones being 86 cm wide. The original entrances on the north and south have now been turned into windows. The pointed arches of the entrances have lost their original shape due to plastering, and the original curved cornice has now been straightened. Of the three mihrabs in the interior, the central one being projected outside with a half dome, and the side mihrabs are now converted into shelves. The dome of the mosque is carried on squinches, and its outer merlon decoration appears to be modern.

Extensive renovation has given the mosque a modern look. Both the interior and exterior have been plastered, lime washed and painted, thereby obliterating all original decorations. The mosque is extended by pucca roofed closed verandas on the south and east sides. Grilled windows are placed on the walls. A staircase has been added in the southwest corner. The mosque is presently being used as a jami mosque. [Muazzam Hussain Khan]

[[Category:Religions]]

[[bn:ইউসুফগঞ্জ মসজিদ]]

Yusuf, Moniruddin

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[[Image:MuniruddinYusuf.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Moniruddin Yusuf]]
'''Yusuf, Moniruddin''' (1919-1987) writer and translator, was born on 13 February 1919 in the zamindar family of Boulai in [[Kishoreganj District|kishoreganj]] district. His father was Maulvi Misbah. It is said that his forefathers belonged to a Mughal family. They spoke Urdu at home and so his initial education began under an Urdu teacher. Later he was admitted to the local Middle English school. Thereafter, he studied at Ramananda High School at Kishoreganj and the Zila School at Mymensingh. He passed his Entrance examination from the Zila School (1938) and intermediate from Dhaka Intermediate College (1940). He then got admitted to the Bangla Department of Dhaka University but before his final examination was over he went to Calcutta, and then to Delhi, and ended up working in Bombay.

However, he returned home after nine months and did business for sometime. He then came to Dhaka and joined the Pakistan Observer and later the [[Sangbad, The|sangbad]] as a journalist. Finally, he joined the public relations department of the [[Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation|bangladesh agricultural development corporation]], retiring from this organisation in 1979. He used to edit the corporation's journal Krishi Samachar.

Moniruddin wrote 28 books of poems, fiction, plays, essays, biographies, works for young people, translations and autobiography. Some of his well-known books are: (fiction) Jhader Rater Shese, Panser Kanta, Or Bayes Yakhan Egaro; (play) Isha Khan; (essays) Rumi’s Masnavi (1966), Urdu Sahityer Itihas (1968), Bangla Sahitye Sufi Prabhab (1969), Amader Aitihya O Sanskriti (1978), Karbala: Ekti Samajik Ghurnabarta, Sanskriti Charcha (1980), Bangladesher Sarbik Agragatir Laksye Ekti Prastab (1984), Naba Mulyayane Rabindranath (1989); (biography) Hazrat Fatema O Hazrat Ayesha; (works for young people) Chhotader Islam Parichay and Mahakavi Ferdousi; (autobiography) Amar Jiban, Amar Abhijvata (1992).

Alongside Bangla he also did research on Urdu and Persian literature. Among his best works are his history of Urdu literature and his translation of Ferdousi's epic Shahnama into Bangla in six volumes (1991). The works he has translated include Iqbaler Kavya Savchayan (1960), Diwan-e-Ghalib (1964), Kalame Raghuib (1966) etc. Quite a few of his manuscripts remain unpublished. Moniruddin Yusuf was also attracted to films. He began directing a film titled Madhurati but was not able to complete it.

Moniruddin was awarded with five prizes in recognition of his contribution to literature. These include the Governor's gold medal, Habib Bank Literary Award, Bangla Academy Literary Award (1978), Abul Mansur Ahmed Literary Award and Ekushey Padak (1993, posthumous). He died in Dhaka on 11 February 1987. [Ayub Hossain]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:ইউসুফ, মনিরউদ্দীন]]

Young Bengal

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'''Young Bengal''' a socio-intellectual label that was given by the contemporary Calcutta society to the students of [[Hindu College|hindu college]] who followed their teacher Henry Louis Vivian [[Derozio, Henry|derozio]], a free thinker and rationalist.

Derozio taught his students to develop critical outlook about life and societal processes. He taught them how social institutions take root and develop and how people become attached to dead and fossilised ideas and institutions. Drawing examples from world history and philosophy, Derozio tried to persuade his students to love knowledge and abandon the habit of believing groundlessly. To his students his repeated sermon was 'to live and die for truth'.

The most favourite students of Derozio were a band of brilliant students of the Hindu College like Krishnamohan Bndyopadhyay, Rashik Krishna Mallik, Dakhinaranjan Mukhopadhyay, Ramgopal Ghose, Madhab Chandra Mallik, [[Lahiri, Ramtanu|ramtanu lahiri]], Maheshchandra Ghose, Sibchandra Deb, Harachandra Ghose, Radhanath Sikder, Govindachandra Basak, Amritalal Mitra and others. They were inspired and excited by a spirit of free thought and revolt against the existing social and religious structure of the Hindu society.

As a mark of emancipation from decayed traditions they exulted in taking beef and drinking wine, which they regarded as a yardstick to measure their freedom from all religious superstition and prejudice and a notable effort to break social fetters. Many of Derozio's students found logic and substance in the arguments of the [[Christian Missionaries|christian missionaries]] against many superstitious and cruel beliefs of the Hindus. Quite a number of them including Dakhinaranjan Mukhopadhyay and Krishnamohan Bandyopadhyay even left Hinduism and embraced Christianity.

In 1828 Derozio founded with his students the 'Academic Association', which organised debates on various subjects. Derozio's students read the writings of Voltaire, Hume, Locke, Tom Paine and others and quoted them freely in their debates. Another organisation of the Young Bengal was the 'Society for the Acquisition of General Knowledge' founded in 1838. Tarachand Chakravarty was the president of the society and secretaries were [[Mitra, Peary Chand|peary chand mitra]] and [[Lahiri, Ramtanu|ramtanu lahiri]].

The Young Bengal published quite a few journals between 1828 and 1843 to give wider publicity to their views and principles. Among these were the Parthenon, Hesperus, Jnanannesan, Enquirer, Hindu Pioneer, Quill and the Bengal Spectator. Only one issue of the Parthenon came out in 1830 and then it discontinued. Encouraged by the missionaries, the Young Bengal group published the Jnanannesan (Quest for Knowledge) for disseminating their views. It had a longer life; starting in 1831, it continued up to 1844. Organised by Rashik Krishna Mallik, Jnanannesan was a bilingual journal aimed at educating the people in the science of government and jurisprudence. Krishnamohan started the Enquirer in 1831 and vehemently criticised the orthodox community that had mobilised its forces against the young radicals. Many of the Young Bengal faced with social excommunication and social pressure were brought to bear on them to persuade them to give up their radical views. The articles written by members of Young Bengal and published in the Hindu Pioneer (started in 1838) clearly showed the growth of political consciousness among them. The Quill, run by Tarachand Chakravarty, also was critical of the government.

In their writings the Young Bengal expressed frustrations about the unequal political status of the natives and Europeans. The Bengal Spectator, a progressive publication, was perhaps the last of the Young Bengal journals. Starting in 1842, these monthly-published articles on social, political and economic problems of the period and discussed such subjects as female education and remarriage of Hindu widows. Later it became a daily.

Besides their attacks on Hinduism, the Young Bengal supported most vocally the westernization processes initiated by the colonial state and their agencies. The Young Bengal movement is one of the most controversial phases of the [[Bengal Renaissance|bengal renaissance]] in the nineteenth century. They earned both unstinted praise and outright condemnation. They were connected with the efforts made for the introduction of western medical education in the country, which ultimately led to the foundation of the [[Calcutta Medical College|calcutta medical college]] in 1835. They also encouraged the students of the Medical College to overcome the prevailing prejudice against dissecting dead bodies and soon the prejudice was removed. Some scholars assert that the Young Bengal activists were the pioneers of the Bengal Renaissance. There is no doubt that they contributed much to the awakening of Bengal in the early nineteenth century.

The greatest folly on the part of the Young Bengal, however, was that they found perfection in everything western. Oriental ways of life and thought appeared to them superstitious and unacceptable. Their aversion to native practices and their uncritical adoption of western habits and manners, though unsuccessfully, made them hateful in the eyes of the natives in general.

The Young Bengals were indeed too young to grasp and evaluate the significance of freethinking and disinterested questioning. Their half-baked knowledge about western civilization and their ignorance of the oriental culture and historical processes made them highly audacious to the extent of downgrading Bengal culture and achievements as a whole. Consequently, in spite of their eloquent arguments against many aspects of contemporary life and institutions, they failed to enlist support from the Bengal literati and sustain their ideology. The Young Bengal spirit proved to be ephemeral and shallow and faded away as quickly as it appeared. In the later part of the nineteenth century Young Bengal turned into a social gossip. [Sirajul Islam]

Yogir Bhavan

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'''Yogir Bhavan''' a village under Paikar union of Kahaloo upazila in Bogra district, about 8 kilometer southwest of [[Mahasthangarh|mahasthangarh]]. Yogir Bhavan is famous for the settlement of the Nath sect of Shiva Sannyasis (mendicants). The settlement area of this sect was about 80 acres of land.

The whole settlement or built-up area is divided into two enclosures by a partition wall. The western enclosure has two ruined shrines called Darma Dungi and Gadighar. The eastern enclosure contains four temples dedicated respectively to Sarvamangala, Durga, Kala Bhairava and Goraksanath. Unfortunately all the icons once worshipped in these temples are now missing. The Sarvamangala temple is highly ornamented with carved bricks and terracotta plaques. These temples were built in the 17th and 18th centuries AD, as evidenced by inscriptions and architectural styles. They were probably built with materials found in the same site. [Ayub Khan]

[[bn:যোগীর ভবন]]

Yoga Philosophy

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'''Yoga Philosophy''' see [[Sada Darshan|sada darshan]].

[[bn:যোগ দর্শন]]

Yoga

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'''Yoga''' see [[Sada Darshan|sada darshan]].

[[bn:যোগ]]

Yishu Pat

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'''Yishu Pat''' a form of folk painting based on the life of [[Jesus|jesus]] Christ. [[Patua|patua]]s who live in a few villages under Pingla thana in Midnapore district of [[West Bengal|west bengal]], usually draw such Patachitras. Yisu pats, mainly drawn according to the specifications of individuals, are quite different from mainstream patachitras. The birth of Jesus on a jar in a cowshed, religious sermons by Jesus to his disciples, spiritual communication between Jesus and God, crucifixion of Jesus, etc are the themes of Yisu pats. [Yas Vanu Begum]

''See also'' [[Pata Painting|pata painting]].

[[Category:Religions]]

[[bn:যিশুপট]]

Yasmeen, Nilufar

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[[Image:YasmeenNilufar.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Nilufar Yasmeen]]
'''Yasmeen, Nilufar''' (1948-2003) artiste in [[Classical Music|classical music]], [[Nazrul Songs|nazrul songs]] and songs of Atulprasad, Dwijendralal and Rajanikanta. Born on 13 February 1948 Nilufar got the support from her parents in cultivating music from her early childhood. She was the fourth among her five sisters and in fact, all sisters earned reputation as artistes. Farida Yasmeen, the eldest, and Faozia Yasmeen, the second were both noted singers, Nazma Yasmeen, the third performed well as an actress and in recitation of poems and, Sabina Yasmeen, the youngest among the sisters is one of most outstanding singers of the country. Nilufar had an extraordinary skill in several areas of music. Besides classical music, she was remarkably proficient in singing the old style [[Tappa|tappa]], [[Thungri|thungri]], [[Kirtan|kirtan]], as well as the modern songs. Nilufar Yasmeen passed Secondary School Certificate and Higher Secondary Certificate Examinations in 1963 and 1965 respectively.

She completed BA (Honours) in Sociology from the University of Dhaka in 1968 and did her masters in the same subject from the same university in 1970. She started taking formal lessons in classical music under Pundit PC Gomes in 1964. Later she studied and was trained under the music gurus of both East and West Bengal such as Prashun Bandyopadhyay, Mira Bandyopadhyay, Ustad Sagiruddin Khan, Ustad Fazlul Haq, and Ustad A. Daud. She took lessons on Nazrul songs under Sheikh Lutfar Rahman and Shudhin Das.

Nilufar was married to noted filmmaker and composer [[Rahman, Khan Ataur|khan ataur rahman]] (1928-1997). She worked as a television artiste from very early age of her life. In recognition of her performance as a playback singer, she received the Bangladesh Cine Journalists Association Award in 1975, National Film Artiste Award in 1986 and Ekushey Padak (posthumously) in 2004.

The University of Dhaka appointed her as lecturer in the Department of Dramatic Arts and Music in 1995. Nilufar Yasmeen died of cancer on 10 March 2003 and in memory of the late artiste and teacher, her elder sister had established a scholarship for the best performing student of music at the university of Dhaka. [Saim Rana]

[[Category:Red links]]

[[Category:Biography]]

Yama Pat

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'''Yama Pat''' a canvas with paintings on the life hereafter, and is chiefly in use among the Hindus. The paintings depict the after-death judgement by Yama, the god of death, sufferings in hell, and the rewards of heaven. The paintings related to hell are usually horrid and abominable. But the paintings depicting the rewards feature attractively the amorous sports of the pious with beautiful women.

The yama pat paintings are mostly used as tools of moral education rather than as object of arts. The style of these paintings is usually crude and vulgar. Yama pats were in currency in the seventh century before the birth of Christ. At that time, a group of people, known as Maskari, tried to impart ethics and religious instruction by showing these pictures. The Maskaris used to paint scenes of sinners being tormented and the dreaded figure of the god of death. The [[Patua|patua]]s of Bengal generally narrate various stories through their paintings and draw the hell scene at the end. The ancient custom of yama pat is still extant in society. [Yas Vanu Begum]

[[Category:Art]]

[[bn:যমপট]]

Yam

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'''Yam''' large, sub-aerial soft starchy, tuberous root of any of various climbing vines of the genus Dioscorea, having about 600 species under the family Dioscoreaceae. There are about 11-12 cultivated species in the tropical and subtropical regions. The most common cultivated specie are ''D. alata'', ''D. rotunda'', ''D. opposita'', ''D. cayenansis'' and ''D. esculanta''. Yam is the chief food of millions of people in West India, South Afiica, Central Africa and tropical Asia. In Bangladesh D. alata has the largest yield; average yield per plant is about 8 kg.; flesh is white or cream coloured and may even be pink or purple. D. esculanta is a smaller palatable yam also cultivated in some places. They are cultivated in April or May by cutting the tuber having one or two young stem bud. In Bangladesh it is cultivated mainly as homestead plant and consumed as vegetable. The wild species are not exploited for either food or for any steroidal sapogenins related to sex hormones or cortico-steriods. [Mostafa Kamal Pasha]

''See also'' [[Tuber Crop|tuber crop]].

[[Category:Flora]]

[[bn:লতালু]]

Yajna

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'''Yajna''' Hindu religious rite during which Vedic mantras seeking divine blessings are recited and burnt offerings thrown into the sacred fire. Through yajna the devotees ask for different boons: wealth and prosperity, destruction of enemies, victory in war, cure in sickness, and paradise. Yajna developed in Vedic times and gradually became firmly established in society. During this period yajna was the main religious rite, which is why a major Vedic literary tradition, called Brahmin literature, emerged around it. During yajna fire is essential. It is called the mouth of the gods and through fire, it is believed, all burnt offerings reach the gods. In other words, if an offering meant for a god is thrown into the fire while someone is reciting Vedic hymns, the fire will ensure that the particular god will receive the offering.

In Vedic yajna three types of fire were needed: domestic fire, ahbaniya (invokable) fire and daksinagni fire. After erecting the yajna hall, the three fires were installed on its three sides. On the west was placed the domestic fire, on the east the ahbaniya fire, and on the south the daksinagni. The domestic fire represented the family and was kept alive throughout the ceremony. The ahbaniya fire was for the gods and daksinagni was for one's ancestors.

Four family priests were needed for the yajna: hota, adhvaryu, udgata and brahma. The hota used to recite hymns from Rg Veda to invoke the yajna god, the adhvaryu used to perform rites relating to the burnt offering, the udgata used to sing hymns from Sama Veda, and brahma used to oversee the work of the three priests and advise them. Each one of these priests could have three assistant priests. Thus a total of 16 priests were employed. In some yajnas, all the 16 priests were needed.

There were five types of yajnas in Vedic times: hom, isti, pashu, soma and satrayaga. There were also special yajnas for securing kingdoms or overlordships such as rajasuya, vajapeya, ashvamedha and naramedha. Rajasuya and asvamedha yajnas were known even during the days of the [[Ramayana|ramayana]] and the [[Mahabharata|mahabharata]]. Offerings included milk, milk products, and dishes made from pounded grain. In the pasu yajnas, goats, cows, buffaloes and horses were sacrificed. In naramedha yajna, human beings were generally not killed. Though during the yajna a man would be tied up, he would be set free after the rites were over. The priests who performed the yajna were given gold, cows, clothes or horses.

Vedic yajnas have now declined in importance. Their place has been taken over by jvanayajva, japayajva and namayajva, although on some special occasions like marriages and deaths, Vedic yajnas are still performed, albeit much less elaborately than in the past. [Paresh Chandra Mandal]

[[bn:যজ্ঞ]]

Writing Material

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'''Writing Material''' substances used in writing, eg [[Paper|paper]], pens, ink. Before the introduction of paper, ancient people used stone, copper plate, palm leaf, birch bark (Bhurja patra), cloth fabric, jute pulp paper and parchment as writing materials.

''Stone'' It is very difficult to ascertain exactly when the stone began to be used as a writing support. A stone inscription was recovered from Mahasthan, Bogra, belonging to the king Ashoka of 3rd century BC and was written with Brahmi-lipi and probably the earliest stone inscription in Bengal. In Bangladesh, proto Bengali and Sanskrit inscriptions on the surface of turrets, at the base of stone sculptures and on the entrance of temples are occasionally seen. On top of these, Persian and Arabic inscriptions are seldom found in a calligraphic form on [[Sandstone|sandstone]] and basalt at the entrance of a few mosques. The occasional writings on marble stone are still continuing. Varieties of stone inscriptions are kept in different museums of Bangladesh bearing the witness of the use of stone as a writing material. There are two types of writing on the stones, which are (i) engraving, and (ii) writing with a brush.

''Copper plate'' specially made polished copper material of suitable size used for writing the important facts of the people of ancient Bengal. It does not mean the utensil. Before the introduction of paper, copper plate was one of the main supports for writing particularly in India and Bengal. Thus, many copper plates of [[Bangladesh National Museum|bangladesh national museum]] are bearing facts of the past. A copper plate was discovered in the village of Dhanaidah of Natore district at the time of digging a pond. It belongs to the period of first Kumargupta of 433 AD, containing land donation letter in Sanskrit and can be regarded as the earliest. The technique of writing on copper plate is interesting. Probably the text to be narrated was first written by piece of charcoal on the copper plate. An expert of this kind engraved letters one with a sharp chisel. After engraving, a paste made of charcoal dust mixing with oil or juice of plant, was rubbed over the text and wiped off the excess, which made the writing clear and distinct.

''Palm leaf'' a thick cluster of large palmate or pinnate leaves at the top of a palm tree used as a symbol of victory or success and as a writing support. Before the introduction of paper, palm leaf was one of the main supports for writing and painting particularly in south and southeast Asian countries including India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Indonesia and Kampuchea. For several centuries it remained by far the most important support. It is difficult to say exactly when the palm leaf first began to be used for writing.

A fragment of the text of a 2nd century Indian drama, discovered at Turfan in Central Asia, is perhaps the earliest known palm manuscript. It is almost certain that the earlier manuscripts have been completely destroyed owing to the tropical climate of India and Bangladesh. The palm leaf manuscripts of 4th, 6th, and 7th century have been discovered in different libraries and museums but they are also in fragments. Many old manuscripts written on palm leaves are being preserved in different old libraries and museums of the country including the national museum. A lot of palm leaf manuscripts of Dhaka University and Bangladesh National Museum are of 10th to 12th century. So, it may be said that palm leaf was used as popular writing support during Pala and Sena dynasty. Two types of writing such as incision and writing with pen or brush are found on palm leaves. These manuscripts also had illustrations, either incised or painted with a brush. The palm leaves could not be bound like a book. These were stored between two wooden panels that were slightly larger in size than the leaves. These wooden boards were sometimes painted or decorated with ivory and mother of pearl inlay work.

''Bhurja Patra'' (Birch Bark) any tree or shrub of the genus Betula, comprising species with a smooth, laminated outer bark and close-grained wood. In Bangladesh no information is available on Bhurja patra (birch bark) used as a writing material but examples on Bhurja patra applied for preparing mantra are found. According to the Greek historians it was very popular in India as writing material. The oldest Bhurja patra manuscript known so far belongs to the 2nd or 3rd century AD. It is found in fragments that described Dhammapada written with Kharosti script. The use of Bhurja patra as writing material continued upto the Mughal period. Later, paper replaced both palm leaf and Bhurja patra. However, Bhurja patra, which is supposed to be very sacred writing material in India, is used till today for writing religious books as well as for preparing sacred mantras.

''Cloth fabric'' a fabric formed by weaving, felting, etc from wool, hair, silk, flax, cotton or other fibre used for garments, upholstery and many other items. Cloth fabric was one of the writing materials but it is very difficult to mention when it first started to be used because it is perishable material in our climatic condition. Cloth fabric has always been and still is an important support for painting throughout the world and also in Bangladesh. In Bangladesh there was a tradition of preparing royal documents and invitation letters on cloth fabrics, which were kept in scroll. In the last part of the nineteenth century, artists of Bengal (present Bangladesh) used canvas as supports for oil painting and that continue till today. Besides these, nowadays banners and commercial advertisements are prepared on cloth fabrics.

''Parchment'' heavy paper like material made from the skin of sheep or goats and used for writing on. Parchment was never a popular writing material in Bengal or India not even during the Muslim period. But the academic certificates of Calcutta University and sanads of Viceroy of India from 1886 to 1934 AD were written and printed on the coated parchment and some of them are preserved in Bangladesh National Museum, Dhaka.

''Jute pulp paper'' fibre from the outer skin of certain tropical plants used for making paper. The early technique (before 1876) of paper manufacturing process of the different parts of Bengal was more or less same. Such a process where jute was used as the chief raw material was widely adapted in Bogra and Sirajganj districts, Bangladesh.

''Paper'' substance made in thin sheets from wood pulp or rags and used for writing, printing or drawing on, or for wrapping and packing things. Presently it is the most popular writing material and also used for many other purposes. [Md Saber Ali]

''See also'' [[Paper|paper]].

[[bn:লিখন উপাদান]]

Writers’ Building

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[[Image:WritersBuilding.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Writers building, kolkata]]
'''Writers' Building''' the secretariat building of the State Government of West Bengal, India, and the seat of the Chief Minister of West Bengal, has obtained historical significance through its long continuation under the same name ever since the erection of the East India Company's' Fort William' in Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1702. In 1776, when the British rule in Bengal was virtually established and company's clerks then called 'writers' increased manifold, a new structure was established by governor [[Hastings, Warren|warren hastings]] to accommodate the writers. From that time the complex was called Writers Building. But the Writers' Building continued to serve the residential purpose of the company's clerks until 1800, when Fort William College was established in part of the building, and clerks were shifted to other places for accommodation. The Writers' Building then became the secretariat of the British colonial state. The Building was expanding fast in view of the increasing need of the colonial empire. The most remarkable expansions and alterations took place in years 1821, 1830, 1871-74, 1877-82, and 1879. Every time new blocks were added to the main complex, known to all as Writers' Building.

The Writers' Building complex is a classical European architecture which began its journey from being the residential shanties of the company's clerical staff and ended up being the epitome British imperial power in the east. To the general people of Bengal, the Writers' Building turned out to be the symbol of bureaucratic power and red-tapism and also of corruption. This building frequently figured in literary treatment all over British India and beyond, whenever British colonial state power, bureaucratic grandeur, lobbying and corruption were characterized. [Nasrin Akhtar]

[[Category:Architecture]]

[[bn:রাইটার্স বিল্ডিং]]

Writ Petition

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'''Writ Petition''' legal instrument of the superior courts for remedies to persons, natural or jural, against the arbitrary or illegal actions of any authority or the lower court. There are five kinds of writs, namely certiorari, habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition and quo warranto. Originated first in England, these writs were exercised by the judges of the King's Bench and called prerogative writs exercised by that Court on behalf of the King. Article 102 of the Constitution of Bangladesh provides for granting remedies similar to that of the above writs, though it does not speak of any of such writs in specific terms. Sub-clause (i) of clause (a) of sub-article (2) of article 102 provides for remedies similar to that of writs of prohibition and mandamus. Sub-clause (ii) of clause (a) of the same article provides for remedy similar to writ of certiorari. Sub-clause (i) of clause (b) of the sub-article (2) of article 102 provides for remedy similar to that of habeas corpus and sub-clause (ii) of the same clause (b) provides for remedy similar to that of quo warranto.

Certiorari means 'be certified' of the proceedings of any lower court or tribunal to be investigated by the superior court. Records of any pending or concluded proceedings before any authority or court including a tribunal can be called for by the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh for its examination as to the legality or otherwise of the said proceedings. Under sub-clause (ii) of clause (a) of article 102, not only legality of a proceedings but also any act done by a person, performing functions in connection with the affairs of the Republic or a local authority, can be declared to have been done without any lawful authority and with no legal effect. Thus remedy under the aforesaid sub-clause (ii) is wider than that of the remedy available in a writ of certiorari. In a writ of certiorari, superior court interferes when the lower court or tribunal acts without any jurisdiction or in excess of its existing jurisdiction or in cases where it fails to exercise its jurisdiction; for example, when it decides a case without giving an opportunity to the parties to be heard or violates the principle of natural justice or if there is an error apparent on the face of the record of such proceedings. But under sub-clause (ii) of clause (a) of article 102, the High Court Division can also declare any act done by any authority, which is neither a judicial nor a quasi-judicial, to be without lawful authority.

Habeas Corpus means 'have his body'. This is a British Law for the protection of liberty of a subject against his illegal detention in public or private custody since 1640. The King's Bench issues writ of habeas corpus to examine as to whether a person was illegally detained in custody. Under sub-clause (i) of clause (b) of sub-article (2) of article 102 of the Bangladesh Constitution, the High Court Division, on the application of any person, directs that a person in custody be brought before it to satisfy itself as to whether he is being held in custody with or without lawful authority. If the Court finds that he is being illegally held in custody by the authority, it then can declare the same to be without lawful authority. Section 491 of the Code of Criminal Procedure also authorizes the High Court Division to issue a direction in the nature of a writ of habeas corpus to bring before it a person detained in public or private custody in order to see as to whether he is being detained illegally or improperly. If the High Court Division finds that such a person is being held in custody, illegally or improperly, it then directs the detaining authority or person to set him at liberty.

Mandamus means 'we command'. By writ of mandamus, the superior court directs any person, corporation, lower court or government to do something, specified therein, which pertains to his or their office and is in the nature of a public duty. This writ is issued when the lower tribunal has declined to exercise jurisdiction vested in it or any public authority declined to do what he is required by law to do. Sub-clause (i) of clause (a) of sub-article (2) of article 102 of the Constitution authorizes the High Court Division to direct a person performing functions in connection with the affairs of the Republic or a local authority to do what he is required by law to do. This remedy is available when any right of a person, arising from any law and not from any contract, is violated. The applicant must show that he has a legal right to the performance of legal duty by the person or authority against whom the writ is prayed for.

Prohibition means 'to forbid' from doing something. In other words, it is a writ issued by the superior court to a lower court, tribunal or administrative authority prohibiting it from doing something which it is not authorized by law to do. Prohibition is a preventive writ and issued to stop illegal exercise of power of jurisdiction to the detriment of any legal right of a person. Sub-clause (i) of clause (a) of sub-article (2) of article 102 of the Constitution authorizes the High Court Division to direct a person performing any functions in connection with the affairs of the Republic or local authority to refrain from doing what he is not permitted by law to do.

Quo Warranto means 'by what warrant or authority'. Writ of quo warranto provides remedy against illegal occupation or usurpation of any public office or franchise or liberty. It enables inquiry into the legality of the claim, which a person asserts to an office or franchise and to oust him from such position, if he is an usurper. The holder of the office has to show to the court under what authority he holds office. Such remedy is available under sub-clause (ii) of clause (b) of sub-article (2) of article 102 of the Constitution from the High Court Division. [Kazi Ebadul Hoque]

[[bn:রীট পিটিশন]]

Worm

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'''Worm''' long, slender, soft-bodied, legless, bilateral invertebrates including the flatworms, roundworms, acanthocephalans, ribbon worms (nemerteans), and annelids. Many of the worms are parasitic, but there are also a large number of free-living forms occurring in the soil and in aquatic habitats.

'''''Filarial worm''''' Long and thin nematode parasite belonging to the super-family Filarioidea. Among those causing harm, ''Wuchereria bancrofti'' infection occurs in varying degrees in parts of Bangladesh. But the northern districts appear to have a high prevalence. ''Brugia malayi'' was reported once only from the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Both ''W. bancrofti'' and ''B. malayi'' appear in humans, and are transmitted by the [[Mosquito|mosquito]], produce the disease elephantiasis or [[Filariasis|filariasis]]. Some other filarial worms are found in monkeys in Bangladesh. ''W. bancrofti'' and ''B. malayi'' live in the lymphatic system. ''W. bancroti'' males are about 40 mm long and the females are about 82 mm. Females can produce thousands of larvae which are called microfilariae. The microfilariae leave the lymphatic ducts and appear in the blood stream between 10 PM and 2 AM. The appearance in the blood stream coincides with the appearance of the mosquito at night.

When mosquitoes feed on the blood, microfilariae are ingested also. They undergo development in the mosquito and enter a person during a blood meal. The microfilariae mature in the lymph vessels. Adult worms may block the flow of lymph and cause the lymphatic ducts to swell. Elephantiasis is the enlargement of the scrotum, breasts or legs. Hydrocoele is a condition where the lymph fluid is forced into the lining of the testes causing swelling. Varicose develops when lymph fluid return is obstructed. Milky urine develops due to lymph being forced out.

Several genera of mosquitoes transmit ''W. bancrofti''. In Bangladesh ''Culex quinquefasciatus'' is the known vector and ''Cx. pipiens fatigans'' has also been incriminated with filariasis. Prevalence in them can vary from 0.2 to 45%.''W. bancrofti'' infection has been reported from Dhaka city, Thakurgaon, Nilphamari, Dinapjur, Rangpur, and Rajshahi districts. Fifteen to 30 year old people are most vulnerable. The prevalence of infection can range from 7.2% to 32.8%. The northern districts appear to have a higher prevalence rate than other areas. ''B. malayi'' and ''W. bancrofti'' look alike, but the male ''B. malayi'' is smaller (13 mm). The microfilaria are also different. The worms live in the lymphatics and elephantiasis can occur chiefly in the arms and legs. The vector is a mosquito belonging to the genera Mansonia, Aedes, and Culex. [Joseph D'Silva]

'''''Hookworm''''' Any of a number of blood sucking nematodes in the phylum Nematoda, order Strongiloidae that live as parasites in humans and other mammals, and attach themselves to the host's intestine by means of hooks. The body of these worms is slightly curved anteriorly; hence the name 'hookworm'. Hookworm infection in man is caused by infestation with ''Ancylostoma duodenale'' or with ''Necator americanus''. A number of species infest cattle, pig, dog, cat and other animals. Heavy infections lead to bleeding, anaemia, and loss of iron. Males are 8 to 11 mm and females 9 to 13 mm long. A female hookworm can lay 5,000 to 10,000 eggs daily. In Bangladesh hookworm infections have been reported from Comilla, Noakhali, Dhaka, Barisal, Dinajpur, Rangpur, and Mymensingh. Eggs are found both in soil and in stool. Prevalence may be as high as 50%. Adults are more susceptible than children; males tend to be more infected than women, perhaps because of their preoccupation with farm work. Infection by ''N. americanus'' is more common than by ''A. duodenale''. Ignorance, poor hygiene, and general living conditions allow hookworm infection to be present in Bangladesh.

Hookworm infection is more prevalent in rural areas where people do not wear shoes or stockings, and where the soil is contaminated by human excrement. The larva of the hookworm, living in moist soil or mud, easily penetrates the exposed skin; usually the sole of the foot, and is then carried by blood to the lungs. The early sign of hookworm infestation is a dermatitis at the site of entry, commonly known as 'ground itch'. The human hookworm causes anaemia, weakness, and abdominal pain.

''A. caninum'' is the common hookworm of dog, reported in cat and jackal. Incidence in dogs may be as high as 28%. ''Bunostomum bovis'' infests cattle. The rate of infection is about 5% in Bangladesh. [AWM Shamsul Islam and Joseph D'Silva]

'''''Roundworm''''' Common name for members of the phylum Nematoda; in popular parlance however, the term refers to the worm appearing in man, namely, ''Ascaris lumbricoides''. But roundworms in man should also refer to ''Trichuris trichura'', the whipworm; ''Enterobius vermicularis'', the pinworm; ''Ancylostoma duodenale'', the hookworm; and ''Strongyloides stercoralis'', the threadworm all of which occur in the intestine.

In Bangladesh, rural and urban populations, children and tertiary level students harbour one or more of these roundworms. Most of the data comes from studies carried out in Dhaka city and its periphery, especially on children. The occurrence of roundworms has been linked to nutritional deficiencies, low weight and low haemoglobin. Poor sanitary conditions, illiteracy, ignorance, environmental conditions, perception of mothers all contribute to the high rate of roundworm infection in Bangladesh. The rate of ''A. lumbricoides'' infection can be as high as 92% or as low as 25%; infection occurs when its eggs are swallowed. The eggs are voided in the faces and carried in the water.

Open latrines in the villages are the biggest source of infection in Bangladesh. Eggs can appear in soil and also on leafy vegetables. Uncooked vegetables, water and unwashed hands can be sources of infection. Each female ''A. lumbricoides'' can lay up to 250,000 eggs per day, and eggs can remain viable buried in the soil for several months. Whipworm infection is due to a roundworm ''T. trichura''. It is called a whipworm because the posterior end is rather large and the anterior two-third of the body is threadlike. The worms are 30 to 50 mm long, the male being slightly shorter than the female. Each female can lay 3,000 to 50,000 eggs per day. The eggs enter the body when swallowed with food or water. [Joseph D'Silva]

''See also'' [[Ascariasis|ascariasis]]; [[Nematode| nematode]].

[[Category:Fauna]]

[[bn:কৃমিজাতীয় প্রাণী]]

World Heritage Sites

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'''World Heritage Sites''' are declared by the UNESCO considering the leading natural and cultural features of the objects prevailing worldwide including Bangladesh. About 890 famous sites were declared as World Heritage Sites for having such unique features till 2009. Among those, 689 sites have rich cultural heritage, 176 are naturally unique and 25 sites bear both the features. The World Heritage Committee, the approving body of UNESCO has divided the globe into five geographical zones. These are (1) Africa and Arab Zone (including the Middle East), (2) Asia and the Pacific Zone (including Australia and Oceania) (3) Europe and North America (4) Latin America and (5) Caribbean. New world heritage sites are declared every year after the approval of the World Heritage Committee. If any enlisted site is not maintained properly, the Committee omits its name from the list. The World Heritage Committee is constituted for a period of four years comprising representatives from 21 countries across the globe.

The Committee also supervises the management function of each of the world heritage site. All declared world heritage sites are given financial support from the World Heritage Fund for proper protection and maintenance. The UNESCO adopted this decision of extending financial support in its special meeting on 16 December 1972. So far, 186 countries of the world including Bangladesh ratified the 'Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage'.

Three spots of Bangladesh have been declared world heritage sites till 2009. These are: Paharpur Buddhist Monastery of Noagaon, Bagerhat Mosque City and the Sundarbans. The first two sites are parts of world cultural heritage and the rest belongs to world's natural heritage, as the Sandarbans is the largest mangrove forest of the world.

[[Image:Paharpur1.jpg|right|thumbnail|400px|right|Somapura Mahavihara, Paharpur]]
Paharpur Buddhist Monastery, also known as the [[Somapura Mahavihara|somap]][[Somapura Mahavihara|Ura mahavihara]], was declared a world heritage site in 1985. [[Buchanan, Francis|buchanan]] Hamilton spotted this archaeological site in 1807-12. [[Cunningham, Sir Alexander|alexander cunningham]], a famous archaeologist visited this site in 1879 and identified it as a Hindu temple. [[Archaeological Survey of India|archaeological survey of india]], [[Varendra Research Society|varendra research society]] and University of Calcutta jointly started excavation in this site in 1923. Excavation work of this archaeological site was carried out in several phases throughout Pakistan era, and in the post liberation era in sovereign Bangladesh. Remains of a large Buddhist monastery of 274.15 metre x 273.70 metre area was discovered here.

The World Heritage Committee includes a site in its heritage list considering several criteria. It declared Paharpur a new world heritage site considering the fact that it was a unique architectural monument of pre-Islamic era located to the south of Himalaya. The temple in the centre of the single largest architectural complex of the ancient periodwas a rare example of artwork on stone reliefs and terracotta plaques of Pala era depicting an extraordinary aesthetical outlook. It has been presumed that the architectural design of the Paharpur monastery had influenced the architects of Ananda Temple of Pagan, Myanmar and Lor Jangrang and Chandi Sheua temples of Java.

''Bagerhat-Khalifatabad'' the mosque city of mediaeval age famous for its various archeological edifices is situated in Bagerhat district, north of Sundarbans. [[Shatgumbad Mosque|shatgumbad]] mosque. [[Bibi Begni Mosque|bibi begni]] Mosque, [[Chuna Khola Mosque|chuna khola]] Mosque, Zindapeer Mosque, nine-domed Mosque, Rejakhoda Mosque, Ranabijoypur Mosque, Shabekdanga Namajghar, [[Singra Mosque|singra mosque]], Khan Jalan's Residence and the Tomb complex are remarkable heritage sites of high archaeological merit.

[[Image:ShatgumbadMosque.jpg|thumb|left|400px|Shatgumbad Mosque, Bagerhat]]
''Shatgumbad Mosque'' is an enormous and magnificent architectural establishment of [[Khalifatabad|khalifatabad]] town. The Shatgumbad Mosque was not only a place of worship, it was used as the seat of administration as well as the centre for education and a meeting place during the rule of Khan Jahan, a great saint and ruler of Khalifatabad. The mosque is considered as the most massive and magnificent architectural monument built by Khan Jahan.

''Bibi Begni Mosque'' another site enlisted in the world heritage list, is located beside the Shatgumbad Mosque over an area of only 10 square metre. It has four corner towers, three arched doorways on the east wall and one archway each on the north and south walls.

''Chunakhola Mosque'' situated 500 metre east of bibi begum mosque over an area of 12.19 square metre is a single-domed one having four corner towers. Its number and location of arched doorways and archways are similar to the Bibi Begni Mosque.

''Nine-Domed Mosque'' is a rectangular shaped mosque situated on an area of 15.24 square metre on the west bank of nearby Thakur Dighi, a huge water body, also has four corner towers and one archway on each of the east, north and south walls. The interior of the mosque is divided by two rows of stone-pillars into three longitudinal aisles and nine bays. One dome on each of the bays gave the mosque a unique identity. The Nine-domed Mosque is a rare example in the [[Mosque Architecture|mosque architecture]] of Bengal.

''Zinda Pir's Mosque'' The single-domed, although included in the world Heritage site list, the government of Bangladesh has not yet declared it as a protected monument. The [[Department of Archaeology|department of archaeology]] renovated the largely damaged mosque, which had similar features of corner towers and archways like Chunakhola Mosque.

''The Rejakhoda Mosque'' appeared to be a six-domed mosque which is situated 200 metre west of the Zinda pir's Mosque. A small part of the remains still exists there. Rana Bijoypur Mosque' The single-domed mosque was built on an area of 12.17 square metre. Its dome is the largest among all the nearby mosques. Its corner towers are similar to other mosques and rich in band decoration.

''Shabekdanga'' a village located 5 k.m east of Shatgumbad Mosque, has got an ancient prayer house called Shabekdanga Namajghar. Perhaps it is the earliest example of chou-chala architecture that exists in Bengal.

''Singra Mosque'' the single domed mosque was constructed about 150-metre southeast of the Shatgumbad Mosque on an area of 12.09 square metre.

''Khan Jahan's Tomb'' is a single-domed square monument. Its architectural design has similarity with the [[Eklakhi Mausoleum|eklakhi mausoleum]] at Hazrat Pandua. The residence complex of [[Khan Jahan|khan jahan]] is located at a place, 300 metre east of Shatgumbad Mosque. Primary phase of its excavation work has not yet been completed. During the reign of Sultan [[Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah|nasiruddin mahmud shah]] (1436-1459) of Iliyas Shahi dynasty Commander Ulugh Khan Jahan (death 1459 AD) built the architecturally rich Bagerhat town on the Bhairab river along the Sundarbans about six hundred years back. Later during the reign of [[Nusrat Shah|nasiruddin nusrat shah]] (1519-1532), the city was known as a [[Mint Towns|mint town]]. In 1535 AD, Sultan [[Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah|ghiyasuddin mahmud shah]] renamed the town as Khalifatabad-Badarpur. The town was also traced in the map drawn by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century. The name of the town was Haweli Khalifatabad up to the eighteenth century. Detail information about Khan Jahan is unavailable, but the landmark buildings and monuments bear testimony of his creation of distinctive architecture. The architecture of Bagerhat represents a Muslim urban site of mediaeval age, which still exits being an administrative centre of the government. Considering all these merits, the world heritage Committee enlisted this town in the World Heritage list in 1985.

Documents were prepared in 1973 to produce before the World Heritage Committee for enlisting Bagerhat Mosque town and Paharpur Monastery. Following the move, UNESCO in its 21st session in 1980 took a resolution in favour and ultimately these two historical sites were declared as world heritage sites in 1985. Later 13,669 hectors of land around Paharpur Monastery was acquired to protect the remains and a Museum and an office complex were built on 1160 square metre of land. In Bagerhat, 4.07 hectors of land was acquired and 994 square metre office building was constructed there. The first international campaign of the working group for preserving the historical sites of Bagerhat and Paharpur was launched in 1986 and the second campaign was conducted in 1990. Following the move, the International Expert Committee paid several visits to Bangladesh in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996, 1999 and 2002 to find out the ways and means for protecting the architectural remains. An international seminar on Preservation of Terracotta plaques was held in 2004.

''The Sundarbans'' is the lone world natural heritage site of Bangladesh. This is the largest single block mangrove forest spreading over an area of about 5759 square kilometres in Bangladesh. Because of the partition of India, Bangladesh received 2/3 of the forest and the rest is the on Indian side. The forest in Bangladesh territory lies under four administrative ranges. Those are, Burigoalini, Khulna, Chandpai and Sharonkhola under the districts of Satkhira, Khulna and Bagerhat. It is further divided into nine blocks and 55 compartments for better management. About 32.400 hectares of reserved forest here have been declared as wild life sanctuaries. The Sandurbans consists of about 200 islands, separated by about 400 interconnected tidal rivers, creeks and canals.

[[Image:SundarbansForest.jpg|right|thumb|400px|Sundarbans stream]]
The vegetation of the forest is largely of mangrove type and encompasses a variety of plants. The dominating species are: Sundari (Hesitiera fomes) and Gewa (Excoecaria agallocha). Among others Goran (Ceriops decandra). Keora (Sonneratia apetala) and Passur (Xylocarpus mekongensis) are prominent species grown here. Most of the trees have pneamatophores for aerial respiration. In 1903, D. Prain recorded 334 species. Of these 17 are pteridophytes, 87 monocotyledones and the rest are dicotyledones. The species include 35 legumes, 29 grasses, 19 sedges and 18 euphorbias. Of the 50-mangrove plant species recorded so far in the world, the Sundarbans alone contains 35. Within the forest habitats, there are 50 species of mammals, 320 species of inland and migratory birds, about 50 species of reptiles, 8 species of amphibians and about 400 species of fish.

In 1764, the Sundarbans was shown in the map prepared by the surveyor general of the East India Company government of India. In 1860, the Department of Forestry was constituted in the province of Bengal, India, which took over the management of the forest to administer its resources in a proper way. The Forest Act was enacted by the British Indian government in 1865 and under this act, the Sundarbans, a real showpiece of natural history, was declared as a reserve forest in 1875-76. The management plan of the Sundarbans was finalised by 1893-94 and the Department of Forestry was set up with its headquarters in Khulna with a view to fostering the implementation of the Sundarbans management plan. In 1911, the area of the Sundarbans was 16, 902 Square kilometres. It was declared as a Ramsar site in 1992. The World Heritage Committee declared the Sundarbans as a world Natural Heritage site in 1997. [Mokammal H Bhuiyan]

[[bn:বিশ্ব-ঐতিহ্যস্থল, বাংলাদেশ]]

Workers Party

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'''Workers Party''' see [[Political Party|political party]].

Woodworks

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'''Woodworks''' mean engraving and effecting various designs on finished products of wood to make them more lively and attractive. Cots, bedsteads (divans), chests, [[Chaitya|chaitya]]s, vermilion containers (used generally by Hindu married women), household furniture etc are designed in a very expressive manner. Besides these, posts, wooden pillars etc are also sometimes engraved. Bengal has a rich heritage of woodworks.

[[Image:WoodWork3.jpg|right|thumbnail|400px|Decorated door]]
Much of woodworks have been lost due to natural calamities, poor maintenance and different political upheavals; nevertheless quite a few 11th and 12th century woodworks could be gathered from Rampal of Munshiganj district and these are preserved in the Bangladesh National Museum (BNM). Two 11th/12th century pillars are exquisitely decorated.

There was not even the slightest deficiency in designing wooden materials with images, flowers, creepers and herbs. It is quite clear that the woodworks were polished like stonework. The door-frame engraved with Visnu in meditative posture and found from Sonarang under Tangibari of Munshiganj district is an important illustration of Bengal woodworks. Much of its elegance was lost for having been immersed in water for a long time. The image of Lokanath, also found from Tangibari, is another memento of woodwork worth mentioning.

The sculpture of Surasundari (divine nymph) engraved on wood, found while a pond was being excavated in the village of Kazikasba, is another delicate relic of woodwork. The betel-leaf-faced Surasundari, standing with a parrot in her hands, has large eyes, sharp nose and smiling lips. She, through a masterly treatment, was given heavenly beauty. Scholars place the wooden image of Tirthankara, found from Faridpur and now preserved in the [[Asutosh Museum of Indian Art|asutosh museum]], Calcutta, to the 10th-11th century.

[[Gupta, Dinesh Chandra|dinesh chandra sen]], in his Brhatvanga, has mentioned about the decorated woodworks in a temple (c 14th century) of Satkhira district. Decorated woodworks have also been found from the district of Malda and scholars place them to the 16th century. All these lead one to the conclusion that Bengal has a long heritage of woodworks and the tradition continues till today.

[[Image:WoodWork2.jpg|left|thumbnail|400px|Decorated partition wall and door]]
But during the period from the 17th to the 19th century new motif of art was added to the age-old Bengal tradition. Foreign traders brought with them their own system of woodwork and since then there was intermingling of exotic trend with the local one and a mixed system of art was the consequent result.

Imitating the European way of life, Bengalis began to furnish their drawing rooms, bedrooms and dinning rooms in the European style. The trend did not remain confined merely to the rich and the [[Zamindar|zamindar]] class but its effect could be noticed even among the people belonging to the middle class and even lower middle class of Bengal as well of India as a whole. People began to have their houses furnished in the new model. But in rural Bengal the traditional trend was continued. The carpenters of rural Bengal sometimes got an admixture of the European style with the age-old local variety of woodworks and sometimes clung to their own style in designing divergent materials eg partition walls, chests, bedsteads, husking pedals, panels etc.

[[Image:WoodWork1.jpg|right|thumbnail|400px|Decorated bedstead]]
In the local variety of ornamentation, motifs of beasts and birds, the daily life of an individual as well as of the corporate society, wild flowers, kalmilatas (edible aquatic plants) and local deities found expression. Images of different gods and goddesses as depicted in religious scriptures were also engraved. Images depicting Radha-Krsna, Krsna stealing the wears of cowherd-girls, Krsna tending cowherd, Gaur-Netai, [[Durga Puja|durga]] etc were very often engraved.

Besides these some symbolic pictures were also drawn eg pairs of birds, peacocks, tigers, lions, elephants, horses, undulating herbs, trees, mangalghats, snakes, lotuses, lotuses in bloom, even numbers etc. Among the foreign-influenced designs mention may be made of wavy flower plants, border designs, owls, snakes, borak, flowers in vases, grills, pietra-dura etc. Pedestals were designed in different styles eg having the shape of a paw, Victorian designs, geometric designs, design of grape plants etc.

Generally partition walls, doors, panels, temple walls, pillars, bedsteads, chairs, tables, chests, beauty boxes, palanquins, chaityas, chariots etc were decorated in the mixed pattern of indigenous and European styles. In designing the woodworks the carpenter undoubtedly played the most important role, nevertheless sometimes the role of the head of the family got the upper hand. Thus woodworks in Bangladesh was an evolutionary development with the intermingling of local and foreign elements. After 1947 woodwork in Bangladesh got a set back when woodworkers left the country en masse.

Subsequently the local carpenters tried to give the art a new lease of life but they did not succeed much due to socio-economic conditions. Though a marked development is noticed in the art at present, but high skilled products are few and far between.

[[Image:WoodWork4.jpg|left|thumbnail|400px|Decorated traditional chest]]
The variety in woodworks prevalent during the period from the 17th century to the 19th century is not noticed any more. Now in respect of designs and patterns of ornamentation new outlook is getting predominance in decorative woodworks. In earlier times, imitating the Victorian furniture, an elephant’s paw or the claws of a lion or an eagle found expression. Fairies, peacocks, lions’ jaw, lions, horses etc were engraved on different furniture like bedsteads, chairs, tables, selves, almirahs etc. At present modern designs are applied in all sorts of furniture. Boxdivans have replaced traditional bedsteads. The repose of the divan or their stands necessary for suspending mosquito nets are no longer decorated. In rural areas pedestals, stands, reposes of the bedsteads etc are decorated in the traditional manner but the perfection in execution is hardly seen.

In recent times decorated doors and door-frames are getting prevalence among the richer section of the people. Now machine drawn designs are getting preference in engraving furniture. At present traditional furniture also are being used side by side the modern ones. The moneyed class are patronising the traditional woodworks.

Woodworks are also practised in musical instruments, dolls, utensils, house decorative materials, sculpture, boats, and upper portion of the front of a truck. Woods may generally be decorated in four ways: carving, engraving, inlay, and ges painting. Of these engraving is the most popular form. Inlay was popular in the 18th and 19th centuries. Ivory in delicate form was used in inlay. In some cases metallic slices were used in the case of inlay. At present inlay of metallic wire is being reintroduced on wood. A carpenter makes different designs on wood using the two systems of carving and engraving. These designs are made attractive through dazzling colours. [Zinat Mahrukh Banu]

[[Category:Art]]

[[bn:দারুশিল্প]]

Woodpecker

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[[Image:WoodpackerGolden-Backed.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Woodpecker [Photo: Amanul Huq]]]
'''Woodpecker''' (kaththokra) a group of slender birds with very flexible necks, strong, chisel-tipped bills, and very long protrusible tongues.

They belong to the family Picidae, order Piciformes. Most live in trees, using their long claws to grip the bark and long stiff tails to brace the body while they probe for insects or excavate a nest. Included in the family are about 204 species; Bangladesh having 22 species: 21 resident, and one migratory (Table).

''Table'' Woodpeckers of Bangladesh (Class: Aves).
{| class="table table-bordered table-hover"
|-
| Scientific name || English name || Local name
|-
| ''Blythipicus pyrrhotis'' || Bay Woodpecker [Redheaded Bay Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Celeus brachyurus'' [''Micropternus brachyurus''] || Rufous Woodpecker || Lalchey Kaththokra
|-
| ''Chrysocolaptes lucidus'' || Greater Flameback [Larger Goldenbacked Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Dendrocopos atratus'' [''Picoides atratus''] || Stripe-breasted Woodpecker [Stripe-breasted Pied Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Dendrocopos canicapillus'' [''Picoides canicapillus''] || Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker [Grey-crowned Pygmy Woodpecker] || Dhushar Matha Baman Kaththokra
|-
| ''Dendrocopos hyperythrus'' [''Hypopicus hyperythrus''] || Rufous-bellied Woodpecker [Sapsucker] || ---
|-
| ''Dendrocopos macei'' [''Picoides macei''] || Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker [Fulvous-breasted Pied Woodpecker] || Pakra Kaththokra
|-
| ''Dendrocopos mahrattensis'' [''Picoides mahrattensis''] || Yellow-fronted Pied Woodpecker || Pakra Kaththokra
|-
| ''Dendrocopos nanus'' [''Picoides nanus''] || Brown-capped Pygmy Woodpecker [Pygmy Woodpecker] || Ban Kaththokra
|-
| ''Dinopium benghalense'' || Black-rumped Flameback [Lasser Goldenbacked Woodpecker] || Kaththokra
|-
| ''Dinopium javanense'' || Common Flameback [Indian Goldenbacked Threetoed Woodpecker] || ---

|-
| ''Dinopium shorii'' || Himalayan Flameback [Himalayan Goldenbacked Threetoed Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Gecinulus grantia'' || Pale-headed Woodpecker || ---
|-
| ''Hemicircus canente'' || Heart-spotted Woodpecker || ---
|-
| ''Mulleripicus pulverulentus'' || Great Slaty Woodpecker [Himalayan Great Statyheaded Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Picus canus'' || Grey-headed Woodpecker [Blacknaped Green Woodpecker/ Grey Woodpecker || ---
|-
| ''Picus chlorolophus'' || Lesser Yellownape [Small Yellownaped Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Picus flavinucha'' || Greater Yellownape [Large Yellownaped Woodpecker] || ---
|-
| ''Picumnus innominatus'' || Speckled Piculet || SKhudey Kaththokra
|-
| ''Picus xanthopygaeus'' [''Picus myrmecophoneus''] || Streak-throated Woodpecker [Little Scaly-bellied Green Woodpecker] || Sabujey Kaththokra
|-
| ''Sasia ochracea'' || White-browned Piculet [Rufous Piculet] || Lal Khudey Kaththokra
|-
| colspan="3" | Migratory
|-
| ''Jynx torquilla'' || Eurasian Wryneck [Wryneck] || Metho Kaththokra
|}

Woodpeckers vary in size from that of a sparrow to that of a crow. Their colour pattern is usually bold, including black and white or olive. Often there are areas of red on the head. Their flight is heavy and undulating. Most woodpeckers have loud voices and some are noisy. They drum with the bill, particularly during nesting season and when they have found a resonant surface. Courtship flights and displays are shown at mating time. The nest is usually an excavation chiselled in a tree trunk, in which usually two whitish eggs are laid without the addition of nest material. Some species may lay as many as 8 or 10 eggs. Both parents share nest duties.

The green woodpecker (Picus viridis) of Europe and the flickers (Colaptes) of the Americas feed on insects on the ground, away from trees, and one South American species lives entirely in open country, feeding on the ground and making its nest in holes in banks. The South African Ground Woodpecker (Geocolaptes olivaceus) has similarly forsaken forests for open country. The wrynecks are the only members of the woodpecker family that do not excavate their nests; they use natural cavities or old woodpecker or barbet holes. [Md Anwarul Islam]

[[Category:Fauna]]

[[bn:কাঠঠোকরা]]

Wood

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'''Wood''' a material of plant origin characterised by a hard fibrous structure and composed mainly of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. The high content (22-29%) of lignin contributes unique rigidity to the structure and thus distinguishes wood from all other plant materials. Wood is produced in a living tree for support, conduction, and storage of food. The support enables a tree to remain erect despite the height to which the tree grows. Wood also performs the role of conduction which consists of transporting water from the ground to the upper parts of the tree. Food is stored in certain parts of the wood until required by the living tree.

[[Image:Wood.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Treated hardwood]]
Near the bark there is a light coloured wood which is called sapwood. It contains living cells and has an active part in the life process of the tree. It is located next to the cambium. The sapwood layer may vary in thickness and in the number of growth rings contained in it.

The central portion of the wood is generally darker in colour which is called heartwood. It consists of inactive cells formed by changes in the living cells of the inner sapwood rings, presumably after their use for sap conduction and other life processes have largely ceased. The heartwood is the preferred portion of wood, because in many woods the discolouring substances are toxic to insects and fungi which decay wood. Accordingly, heartwood often offers greater resistance to decay than sapwood.

Wood in its original solid form has adequate properties for many uses. In Bangladesh it is widely used for furniture, cabinet, house, boat, ship, railway sleeper, electric transmission poles, fuel, etc. In the comminuted and reconstituted form, it can provide materials with a wide range of properties. [MA Sattar]

'''''Wood preservation''''' protecting wood, wood products or timbers from deterioration, decomposition or damage due to pest attacks through application of chemical substances. Wood is usually deteriorated by fungi (white rot, brown rot, dry rot, soft rot fungi), insects (termites, beetles, carpenter ants), marine borers (molluscans, crustaceans), and a host of other agents.

No single preservative is available which can meet all desirable requirements. Wood preservatives may be oil-borne, water-based or a mixture of different substances. Creosote and pentachlorophenol (PCP) are the organic oil-based preservatives, earlier used for treating of wood poles, piles and railway sleepers in Bangladesh. Nowadays creosote is used only for railway sleepers.

Chromated copper arsenate type C (CCA-C) is considered as effective inorganic water-based preservative and is being used for treating electric wood poles, anchor logs and corsairs in Bangladesh. Chromated copper boron (CCB) is another water-borne preservative, used for indoor use such as for electric meter boards, wooden packings, doors and windows, furniture etc. The third type is a preservative paste, formulated by mixing the oil-borne and water-borne types, such as heavy creosoted boron (HCB).

The life of preservative-treated timber products depends on penetration, retention and degree of fixation of preservatives used. The penetration and retention of a preservative, however, depends on the preservation method. The different methods being used in Bangladesh include washing and coating; brushing, spraying and dipping; soaking; Boucherie process; hot and cold bath process; diffusion process; and pressure process. The full cell pressure process is the best for the highest penetration and retention of preservative and is being commercially followed in Bangladesh. In this process air inside the wood is removed by initial vacuum and then empty cells of woods are filled up with preservative chemical by applying pressure on preservative solution. In Bangladesh fixative type of preservative, such as CCA-C is used for ground and water contact timber products and CCB is preferred for indoor use including hardwood and bamboo. [Arun Kumar Lahiry]

'''Wood seasoning'''' removal of the moisture from wet or green wood, in other words, drying of wood. The moisture remains in wood either as free water in intercellular spaces or as chemically bound water in cell walls. When the moisture content is above 30%, the wood is usually termed as 'green wood'.

[[Image:woodSeasoning.jpg|left|thumb|400px|Wood seasoning]]
The quality and durability of wood are enhanced by seasoning. Adequate seasoning increases the life of wood and usually affords certain amount of protection from pests and microorganisms. Different natural and artificial seasoning methods are practiced in different countries of the world, notable among these are: air seasoning, steam drying, steam conditioning, Boulton drying, chemical drying, water seasoning, solar kiln-drying, kiln-drying, etc.

Air-seasoning method involves natural air and temperature by putting the timbers in the open or under shade for a long time. It is a traditional method and requires at least one year including one winter season for the round and sawn timbers thicker than 25 mm in climatic conditions of Bangladesh. Thin lumbers, planks, boards, fuel woods are often dried under direct sunshine for quick drying. Air-seasoning is economical for only very durable and refractory timbers, otherwise the non durable timbers are often attacked by fungi, insects, and molds and uniform seasoning is not achieved.

In steam drying the timbers or timber products are heated in a closed steam bath and the heated timbers are allowed for further air-drying.

Steam-vacuum process is more advanced process than steam drying because the heated timber in steam bath is further evacuated, as a result some moisture is evaporated out through vacuum.

Water seasoning is not really a seasoning method but an indigenous method traditionally used in Bangladesh. By this process the green timber or bamboo is kept in water for several weeks to months and then air-dried or kiln-dried for use or for preservative treatment. As a result of water treatment some reserve food materials are removed or decomposed, consequently wood becomes less attractive to insects and becomes more porous for quick drying.

In solar kiln-drying process, solar heat is arrested in a glass fabricated green house roofed by black painted tin, then the hot air inside the kiln or house in circulated by using a motor fan. Thereby the thin sawn timbers inside the kilns are dried slowly. In the past such kilns were installed in Bangladesh for drying crossarms, meter boards, planks, etc, but those are not in use now.

In kiln-drying process high temperature is generated, humidity and wind force are controlled in a heat insulated closed chamber or kiln for drying the timber. It is considered as the best method of all due to the fact that timber can be dried uniformly within short possible time.

In Bangladesh dry kilns or seasoning kilns are used for drying wood poles, anchor logs, crossarms, sawn timbers for doors, windows, cabinet, furniture, etc. Generally soft and light wood dries easily and quickly but those comparatively hard, heavy, impermeable due to the presence of deposits and tyloses (anatomical abnormality which blocks the pores) dry slowly.

Besides the Bangladesh Forest Industries Development Corporation (BFIDC), several private enterprises have kilns located at Khulna, Chittagong, Kaptai, Dhaka, Gazipur an Srimangal. [Arun Kumar Lahiry]

[[Image:WoodPest.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Pests of wood]]
'''''Pests of wood''''' living organisms, particularly certain invertebrates causing damage to wood. Some wood boring insects infest freshly felled logs often boring deeply into the wood. The insects do not eat wood, but feed on fungus, often called ambrosia fungus, which grow in the tunnel made by the insect. This group includes the species of Platypus, Crossotarsus, (Platypodidae: Coleoptera), Xyleborus, and Webbia (Scolytidae: Coleoptera). The powderpost beetles, Heterobostrychus, Sinoxylon and Dinoderus (Bostrychidae: Coleoptera) attack dried wood. They bore only in the sapwood containing starch and reduce the wood to a fine flour-like powder. Long-horned beetles, including Hoplocerambyx spinicornis, Batocera (Cerambycidae: Coleoptera) bore in the wood, and their tunnels are usually filled with fibrous wood dust. The Carpenter bees, Xylocopa (Xylocopidae: Hymenoptera) make tunnels in the wood for making their nests. A number of species of termites attack wood on the ground, in storage depots or in use, feeding on the wood materials.

The common insect damage can be prevented by the preservative treatment of wood, residual spraying of insecticides, providing physical barriers with finishes, quick extraction and drying of logs, submersion in water, use of resistant wood, etc. The remedial measures involve fumigation with toxic gases, heat sterilization in kiln, cold sterilization in freezer, etc. Some marine arthropods and molluscs damage harbour fixures, piling, boats, and floating timber in salt water. The most notable are the gribbles, Limnoria spp. (Crustacea) and the shipworms, Teredo and Bankia (Bivalvia: Mollusca). [Md Wahid Baksha]

[[bn:কাঠ]]

Women

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'''Women''' Historians who have addressed the early history of Bengal have not included gender in their analyses of events. However, the names of queens and occasionally of royal sisters do find their way into these accounts, but always in relation to male power. For example, there is a story that Queen Vallabhadevi, wife of the Pala king [[Dharmapala|dharmapala]], was banished to the forest because she had not produced a son. In the forest, according to one legend, she was impregnated by the ocean and conceived a son, [[Devapala|devapala]]. Although the Palas were Buddhists, they extended their patronage to Brahmanism.

After the Senas came to power in the 12th century, Brahman priests were a fixture of the royal court. While the extent to which Brahmanical injunctions were followed during this period is not known, they included pre-puberty marriage of brides with bridegrooms three times their age. Most family celebrations were associated with fertility: the girl's first menstruation, pregnancy, birth, tonsure, first rice and naming. Some women, undoubtedly from the highest classes, were literate but these women had little autonomy.

Women had no legal or social status other than that derived from their position in the family, could not inherit, except for the widow who was allowed to 'use' her husband's property if there were no male heir, and had few options to support themselves. While women belonging to the royal court were secluded from view, this was not true of women generally, who did not veil. It is believed that widows were regarded as inauspicious, prohibited from attending ceremonies, and encouraged to immolate themselves on their husbands' funeral pyres. It is not known how sacraments were supposed to be performed and what was considered ideal behavior. Accounts of how people lived their lives are hardly available. Equally unattainable is information about women's participation in economic production and the impact of changes in crops and commerce on their lives.

During the first three decades of Muslim rule in Bengal the Hindu caste system was defined and inscribed on society. Without a Hindu ruler to enforce social hierarchy, caste councils became arbiters of custom. Greater attention to caste purity undoubtedly had an effect on women's lives as carriers of the code. Marriage was the key institution for maintaining purity and would have been subject to greater scrutiny, as would issues of paternity.

In the 16th century, considered a 'golden age' of Bengali literature, women become visible as literary subjects. The Vishnu cult generated narratives, the Ramayana and stories of Krishna, and devotional songs, with human love as a metaphor, which featured women as heroines and objects of desire. The other major genre was the Mangalkavya, poems that focused on the worship of goddesses and served to connect local goddesses with the wife of Shiva and hence to the dominant tradition. Sri Chaitanya initiated both men and women and some historians have seen this as a time when the status of women improved. Women from respectable families took part in kirtan performances, some traveled long distances as pilgrims, and a few women initiated disciples. The Mangalkavya was a powerful force for propagating popular goddess cults as they established Kamala, Ganga, Shitala, Manasa, Sasthi and other goddesses in the popular imagination. A rich source for historians studying this period, the Mangalkavya also tells us something about women's lives.

By the late 16th century, Bengal was annexed by the Mughal Empire and administered from Delhi. Under Mughal rule, Bengal experienced an economic boom with rice, cotton and silk in demand on the subcontinent and in international markets. Powerful Hindu chiefs were incorporated into the Mughal system with land grants and other inducements. At the same time, the area under cultivation increased significantly and Islam gained adherents.

Far less is known about women in this period than one would expect. Hindu women who worshipped Shiva-Shakti became more involved in ceremonies with the introduction of Kali Puja and Durga Puja, but it is difficult to analyse the importance and significance of goddess worship for women. There are some who contend that women are empowered through goddess worship because they identify with the power of the goddess; others have pointed out that goddesses mainly benefit male devotees. Moreover, the dangerous and irrational side of goddesses such as Kali and Shitala can be rationalised to extend control over women.

The Vaisnava cult was equally ambiguous in terms of empowering women. Vishnu cults initiated women, recognising their spiritual equality, but Chaitanya strictly forbade his devotees to look at or talk to women. The emphasis on women's potential for religious piety seemed, in this case, to be linked to a deep-seated fear and distrust of their sexuality.

The sources agree that Hindus and Muslims followed different customs but also remark on those cases where Muslims observed Hindu customs and Hindus adopted Muslim customs. The Muslim ruling class seldom brought women with them; so it seems clear that wives, and certainly female slaves, were acquired from Bengal. Female slaves served in the households, but details such as their origin or the roles they played in these families is difficult to ascertain. Tales of abduction and rape of Hindu women abound in historical accounts but are narrated without detail. Violence against women has become, nevertheless, the set explanation for growing rigidity in adherence to customs such as child marriage.

Although there were some Hindu girls who attended pathshalas and literate, women known for their erudition, formal education for women was rare. The belief that education for girls contributed to early widowhood seems to have been widespread and, along with the emphasis on early marriage and concern for female chastity, meant females who learned to read did so in the home rather than in schools. The prevalence of child marriage meant that among Hindus there were many child widows and they were required to follow strict rules in terms of dress and diet. It is not known when Hindu women first began practising purda or seclusion, but it was probably in the period between the 16th and 18th century and linked with fear of abduction and greater emphasis on chastity. These customs: child marriage, compulsory widowhood without remarriage, and restrictions on women's mobility were the hallmarks of the Hindu upper castes, and not necessarily followed by the lower castes. The sources say less about Muslim women, but mention customs such as polygamy and seclusion as common. Little is known about education or age of marriage.

British rule brought far-reaching changes in the economic, political, social and religious lives of the people. Early in the 19th century, the 'woman question' became central to discussions about Indian civilisation and influential British writers referred to the treatment of women in condemning Indian religions, culture, and society as inferior.

The two major communities, Hindus and Muslims, were differently affected. As Muslims, and many Hindus, withdrew into defensive positions, some members of the Hindu community reacted by examining their own society and proposing reform. From then on, topics such as sati, child marriage, widowhood, polygamy, and prohibitions on education dominated the discussion on women.

Reformers reacted to foreign writers who declared their culture 'barbaric', but they were also inspired by western ideas and concerned with proving Indian traditions valid and dignified. Rammohun Roy opposed the custom of sati and argued women's 'backwardness' was a consequence of socialisation. Pundit Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar devoted his life to improving the status of Hindu widows and encouraging remarriage, supporting female education, and opposing polygamy. In 1829, the British outlawed sati and in 1856, the Widow Remarriage Act was passed. However, sati continued, even increased in incidence and the 1856 Act had little impact on women's lives. The British were the foreign overlords and their pronouncements regarding social customs were insufficient to effect far-reaching changes in society.

One of the major topics of discussion among reformers was female education. In his Report on the State of Education in Bengal (1836) William Adam wrote that while Hindus believed education would lead to early widowhood, both Hindus and Muslims were reluctant to educate women because they feared 'female intrigue'. At the time, female education was largely informal and limited to practical matters. Women from respectable families often studied classical or vernacular literature as 'a pious recreation', and girls from propertied families received some education in keeping accounts. It is important to recall that the first autobiography Amar Jiban (published in 1875), was written in Bangla by Rassundari Debi, a housewife who had taught herself to read. Muslim girls were expected to learn the Quran and some accounting skills. While the number of women who were literate and capable of handling accounts was undoubtedly higher than the British estimated, it is impossible to arrive at meaningful numbers.

Missionaries began the first girls' schools in Bengal. The Baptist Mission formed the Female Juvenile Society in 1819 and set up the first girls' school. In 1821, Miss Mary Anne Cooke came to Calcutta to preside over 30 schools opened by the Church Missionary Society for 'respectable' Hindu girls. By 1824 there was a Christian female school in Dhaka, but it was closed in 1826. Staffed by Brahman pundits, these schools were patronised by Hindu gentlemen, but failed to attract girls from the higher castes.

One of the most important schools for girls was the Hindu Balika Vidyalaya opened in 1849 in Calcutta by JE Drinkwater Bethune. Bethune persuaded several prominent families to endorse this experiment and by 1850 the school had 80 pupils. In 1854, the government declared its intention of supporting female education through grants-in-aid. In that year Bengal had a total of 288 schools for girls. Those who supported female education wanted their daughters to be good companions to their husbands, 'scientific' nurturers, and members of civil society.

Brahma Samaj led the movement for female education and equality between the sexes. Begun early in the 19th century by men who wanted to examine their religious beliefs, by the 1860s the Samaj sponsored gatherings, religious instruction, and sewing lessons for women. Within a decade Samaj members differed on questions of women's education and reform. In 1878 it was split over questions of 'female emancipation' and the progressive branch, the Sadharan Brahma Samaj, established Bethune College as an affiliate of Calcutta University. In 1883, Kadambini Ganguly (1862-1923) and Chandramukhi Basu received their BA degree from Bethune, becoming the first women graduates in the British Empire.

It was late in the 19th century before the Muslim community tackled issues of female education and social reform. The first men who initiated this reform were members of the ashraf who formed the intelligentsia. They were joined by members of the great landed families, inspired by the work of Sayyid Ahmed Khan at Aligarh, and by members of a new middle-class who acquired wealth and position through business and administrative service. Drawing on Urdu literature from North India, Bengali Muslims instructed their daughters to read manuals about ideal female behavior. One of the best known of these was Ashraf Ali Thanawi's Behesti Zewar published in Urdu in 1905 and its Bangla translation in 1925. This book was designed to guide the 'new Muslim woman' who understood the changing world, assiduously defended and preserved traditions, and willingly accepted dependency and her housebound status. These manuals for women, written by men, advocated education designed to add honor and dignity to the woman's family.

The Muslim community was also concerned with other issues that were salient among Hindu reformers. One of these was child marriage, a topic commented on by Muslim reformers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. But they also focused on issues unique to the community: mahr, the marriage contract, inheritance, polygamy, and female seclusion. Increasingly, the Muslim middle class who espoused these reforms developed a life style not unlike that of reformist Hindus.

Nawab Faizunnessa Choudhurani, the daughter of a prosperous landowner, set up the first girls' school in Comilla in 1873, but it was not until the 20th century that Muslim girls studied at such schools. In the 1880s the Musalman Suhrd Sammilani, an association of Muslim men who had graduated from Dhaka College, advocated systematic home education for women and developed a syllabus, provided textbooks and arranged for examinations to advance this movement. It was Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain who began the movement to set up schools for the education of Muslim girls. Born into a landed family, Rokeya was educated in secret with her brother's help. Her husband continued her education, encouraged her to mix with 'new women' from other communities, and provided her the money necessary to open a school for girls. The Sakhawat Memorial Girls' School, established in Calcutta in 1911, was the first for Muslim females in Bengal.

Rokeya was also convinced of the harmful affects of purdah and wrote about it in her essays and the terrifying and funny, Abarodhbasini, published in serial form in 1929. However much she disliked the excesses of veiling, Rokeya observed its rules in her school.

By the beginning of the 20th century, Bengali women were forming their own organisations to promote social reform. Saraladevi Chaudhurani '(1872-1945), a member of the Tagore family, called for a permanent association of Indian women. Her organisation, the Bharat Stri Mahamandal, had its first meeting in Allahabad in l9l0, but soon developed branches in Bankura, Hazaribagh, Medinipur, and Calcutta, as well as other cities in India. One of the organisation's main concerns was female education and it sponsored teachers who taught reading, writing, music, sewing, and embroidery to women in their homes. In 1916, Rokeya began the Anjuman-i-Khawateen-i-Islam to work among disadvantaged Muslim women. At the same time Saroj Nalini Dutt (1887-1925), founder of the women's institute movement in Bengal, organised mahila samitis in district towns.

The 1920s and 1930s witnessed the beginning of all-India women's organisations that were joined by Bengali women. The National Council of Women in India and the All-India Women's Conference both had branches in Bengal, and Bengali women served on their national councils and committees.

Bengali women's involvement in nationalist politics began in late 19th century. In 1890, five years after the Indian National Congress was founded, Swarnakumari Ghosal, a novelist, and Kadambini Basu Ganguly, one of the India's first female medical doctors, attended as delegates.

In 1905, the British partitioned Bengal Presidency and women joined men in protesting this division by boycotting foreign goods and buying only swadeshi products. Other women took a vow to devote themselves to the motherland and observed it by every day setting aside a handful of rice for the cause. Still other women gave their support to revolutionary organisations.

When Secretary of State for India Edwin Montagu announced in 1917 the British government's intention of including more Indians in the governing process, Sarala Devi Choudhurani applied for an appointment for members of Bharat Stri Mahamandal to discuss women's educational needs. Members of the newly formed Women's Indian Association in Madras also requested an audience. Officials informed both groups that only deputation on political subjects would be heard. In December, Sarojini Naidu (1879-1949) from Hyderabad led an all-India delegation of prominent women, including Sarala Devi, to meet with Montagu and Chelmsford and request the vote for women. It was Sarojini Naidu and Sarala Devi Choudhurani who secured the support of Congress for women's franchise. In England, Sarojini Naidu spoke to the Joint Select Committee and said that all Indian women, including orthodox Hindu and Muslim women, wanted the vote. In the end, the House of Commons allowed provincial legislative councils to add women to the list of registered voters. Women's organisations worked for the removal of sex disqualification and in 1926 propertied women in Bengal won the right to vote. They composed 3.0% of the total electorate.

Gandhi played a seminal role in bringing women in Bengal and throughout India, into agitational politics. During the Non-cooperation Movement, Basanti Devi, Urmila Devi, and Suniti Devi, all members of Congress leader Chittaranjan Das' household, took to the streets to support the boycott against British goods and were arrested. Their detention grabbed public attention and Gandhi urged women all over India to follow the example of these brave Bengali women.

The Mahila Rastriya Sangha, begun in 1928 by Latika Ghosh (b 1902), was the first formal organisation to mobilise women in Bengal for political work. That year Subhas Chandra Bose also asked Latika to recruit a company of women volunteers to march with men in the procession to inaugurate the annual Congress meetings in Calcutta. She enlisted 300 women: students from Bethune College and Victoria Institution, and teachers employed by Calcutta Corporation. The Calcutta women formed the Nari Satyagraha Samiti in 1929 in response to the Congress call for women to be ready to serve the nation. During the Civil Disobedience Movement women made and sold salt, picketed cloth and liquor shops, preached the value of khaddar, and joined processions.

Muslims were generally suspicious of Congress at this time. However, on the eve of the Civil Disobedience movement, Hindus and Muslim in Calcutta joined to support the Carters' strike. On the first day of the strike seven cart-pullers were killed and the next day, Hindus and Muslims mourned together, while women showed their support by throwing flowers from their houses. But solidarity was the exception rather than the rule and riots, generally targeting shops and markets, broke out in a number of cities.

At this time revolutionary organisations were recruiting women, mostly students, to their ranks. There are four revolutionary women whose deeds have been valourised by nationalist historians. Shanti Ghosh (1916-1989) and Suniti Chowdhury (1917-1988), two schoolgirls from Comilla, shot Magistrate Stevens to death on 14 December 1931. In February of the next year, Bina Das (1911-1986) attempted to shoot the Governor of Bengal at the Calcutta University Convocation ceremonies. And, in September, Pritilata Waddedar (1911-1932), took part in a raid on the Chittagong Club.

In district towns and villages women joined processions, wore khaddar, and hid fleeing revolutionaries. Women from Medinipur, 24-Parganas, Khulna, Bakerganj, Noakhali, and Chittagong broke the salt laws and bravely endured police violence against them. It was in this tumultuous environment that Sarala Devi Choudhurani tried to organise a separate Women's Congress. Women from all over Bengal met in May 1931 to discuss this issue, but in the end stayed with the Indian National Congress.

By 1932 opposition to the government had decreased in the cities but increased in rural areas and among women. Muslim weavers and individuals trained in Deobandi Madrasas joined the movement at this time. The Communal Award and Poona Pact changed the nature of the debate since it was now clear there would be separate electorates for Muslims and reserved seats for the depressed castes. The Hindu Mahasabha, worried about the electoral future of Hindus, protested this decision and fomented propaganda about Muslim assaults on Hindu women.

It is only in the 20th century that detailed records of women's work are found. On the one hand, the growth of factories opened the door of employment for women, but on the other, mechanisation replaced avenues women had for earning money. In the jute mills of Bengal women were about 20% of the total workforce, but many of them were not Bengalis. Hindu and Muslim Bengali women were hindered by purdah restrictions and accounted for only 10% of the female jute workers. The decline of female employment in the jute mills, related to increased mechanisation and the imposition of labour legislation, was discernible from 1930. Although their numbers were small, women played a significant role in strikes and labour disturbances, as strike breakers, and as labour leaders.

Other women found work in the unorganised sector where they earned a living as maidservants, coolies, and prostitutes. These unregulated occupations flourished and continued to flourish in the modernising urban sectors. Beginning in the late 19th century, educated women were trained in the new professions open to them: teaching and medicine. In 1884 Kadambini Ganguly became the first woman admitted to Calcutta Medical College, but Bidhumukhi Bose and Virginia Mary Mitter were the first Indian women to graduate, completing their degrees in 1889. Campbell Medical School, offering a vernacular medical degree, opened its doors to women in 1888. Musammat Idennessa, the first Muslim woman to study medicine in Bengal, entered the programme in 1891. She graduated in 1894 and went on to serve as a medical doctor in Mymensingh.

Women were prominent in the Quit India Movement that began in 1942. When the movement spread to the countryside, large number of peasant women joined men in protesting taxes, land tenure, and landholder's rights. At the end of September 1942, peasants attacked police stations and destroyed telegraph lines in four sub-divisions of Medinipur district. When people of Tamluk sub-division marched on the town, Matangini Hazra, a 73-year old widow, stepped forward, lifted the Congress flag, and gave her first public speech. She was shot first in the hand holding the flag and then in the head.

Two Bengali women, Aruna Ganguli Asaf Ali (1909-1996) and Sucheta Mazumdar Kripalani (1908-1974), both domiciled in other parts of the country, became all-India leaders in this movement. In 1942 Aruna Asaf Ali went underground to organise the resistance and hinder the war effort. Sucheta Kripalani also went into hiding in 1942, but she worked to co-ordinate non-violent activity to bring the government to a standstill.

The Bengal Famine of 1943-1944 caused the death of at least 3.5 million people and the impoverishment and dislocation of millions more. Women who previously earned a living by husking paddy or trading in the local market were deprived of their incomes. In addition to food shortages, women faced sexual harassment when they sought employment or help from relief centres. During the famine years, women were visible both as victims and activists. Starving women begged for food in public places, while middle-class women worked to provide relief.

India was at war against Germany and its allies, but had not consented to this war. Subhas Chandra Bose escaped from Calcutta in January 1941, and by 1943 was in Singapore organising the Indian National Army. In addition to building a conventional army, he wanted to organise a unit of women to be called the Rani of Jhansi brigade. Before long he had 1000 women recruits and among them were a number of Bengali women, ready to fight to death to liberate the motherland.

The Tebhaga Movement of 1946 fully involved women. Among the young Communists who went to the countryside to organise the peasants were Rani Mitra Dasgupta, Manikuntala Sen, and Renu Chakravartty (1917-1994). Rural women readily joined the movement, at first in subsidiary roles, and then as leaders and fighters. One of the best known of these women was Bimala Majhi, a widow from Medinipur district, who became a successful organiser of women.

August 1946 catapulted sectarian politics into a new phase. Hindus and Muslims who had lived side by side now turned on each other with vicious intent. The Calcutta riots were followed by riots in Noakhali, Comilla, and Tippera.

In the period following 1947, an account of Bengali women must be told as two stories as new national identities shaped what they could do as women. [Geraldine Forbes]

'''Bibliography''' Usha Chakraborty, ''Condition of Bengal Women Around the 2nd Half of the Nineteenth Century'', Calcutta, 1963; Ghulam Murshid, ''The Reluctant Debutante: Response of Bengali Women to Modernization, 1849-1905'', Rajshahi, 1983; Meredith Borthwick, ''The Changing Role of Women in Bengal, 1849-1905'', Princeton, 1984; RS Hossain, ''Sultana's Dream and Selections from the Secluded Ones'' (ed and translated by Roushan Jahan), New York, 1988; Tilottama Tharoor (ed), ''Naari''. Calcutta, 1990; SN Amin, ''The World of Muslim Women in Colonial Bengal, 1876-1939'', Leiden, 1996.

'''''Constitutional status of women''''' Women have some rights recognised by the Bangladesh Constitution. Article 15(d), under the heading of Fundamental Principles of State Policy, states that where the State accepts a fundamental responsibility towards raising the standard of living of the people, it specifically undertakes responsibility for providing social security to inter alias, widows. Article 17(a) provides for equal access of boys and girls to free and compulsory education upto the level to be decided by law. Article 18 (2) provides that the state shall take effective measures to prevent prostitution. Equal opportunity for all citizens is ensured by Article 19(1). Sub-section 2 of the same Article requires the state to take effective measures to remove socio-economic discrimination.

The Section Three of the Bangladesh Constitution contains provisions for fundamental rights. Rights and opportunities for women (or rights relevant to them) are the following:

Article 27: equality of all citizens before law and equal protection under law.

Article 28(1): no discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.

Article 28(2): equal opportunity for men and women in all spheres of state and public life.

Article 28(3): no discrimination on grounds only of religion race, caste, sex or place of birth in providing access to any place of public entertainment or resort, or admission to any educational institution.

Article 2(91): equal opportunity for all citizens in respect of employment or office in the service of the Republic.

Article 65(3): Women are free to contest election from any constituency. But originally 15 seats were reserved for women; the number has been raised to 30.

These provisions in the Constitution are believed to have provided adequate guarantee for women's rights in Bangladesh. In reality, however, despite the constitutional provisions, women's rights have little practical application. The government did not take any positive step to rescind the old laws antagonistic to women's rights.

The Constitution of Bangladesh made provision for reserved seats for women in the context of women's backwardness and disadvantageous situation. Originally 15 for ten years as per the Constitution of 1972, an amendment in 1978 increased this number of women's reserved seats to 30, and extended the period of reservation to fifteen years. The system was however interrupted in December 1987. Consequently, there was no provision for reserved women's seats in the 1988 parliamentary election. But, pressed by the strident demands of some women's organisations, the system was reinstated through the tenth Amendment in 1990 reserving 30 seats for 10 years from the date of the first meeting of the next Jatiya Sangsad. This limit has expired in 2000. [Shawkat Ara Husain]

'''''Legal status of women''''' indicates to what extent women enjoy equality in the socio-economic and political spheres of the country. Laws protecting women's rights provide the essential framework for formal equality to be transformed into reality. They also provide legal protection to women's rights by critically intervening in health, education and employment sectors.

The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh is the ultimate source of the fundamental rights enjoyed by men and women. However, the day to day life of the people is governed by two sets of laws: civil and personal. The civil laws cover the rights of women under the Constitution; the personal laws cover the family life.

The Constitution of Bangladesh guarantees equal rights of men and women in all spheres of the State and public life enabling the State to take affirmative actions towards this end. Sub-Article (2) of Article 29 of the Constitution recognises political rights of women by clearly enunciating that no discrimination on the basis of sex shall be permitted.

Article 27 categorically states that all citizens are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection of law. Article 28 permits the State to make 'special provisions in favour of women or children or for the advancement of any backward section of citizens'.

The supportive action by the government came through the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (UNCEDAW).

An analysis of the relevant text of the Constitution shows that the guarantees of equal rights between men and women do not extend to the private sector (i.e., the inheritance of property and matters concerning the family). In ratifying the UNCEDAW, the government had reservation regarding the provisions related to equal rights within the family. This is a sharp departure from the commitment made by the government to establish gender equality. The civil laws are supposed to maintain non-discrimination between men and women. But some of these laws are openly discriminatory against women. The Citizenship Act of 1951 is an example of such discrimination. This Act encroaches upon a woman's right to enjoy the same legal status as that of a man.

Though criminal laws are not based on religious laws, these laws fail to maintain non-discrimination between men and women in some respect. Under the existing criminal laws, rape is defined as an act of sexual violence, but proving charge of rape is very difficult for a woman as the rules of evidence require that the victim has to undergo medical test to prove the incidence f forcible sexual violence as well as her lack of consent. The victim and the accused have been put on the same footing, as the law requires that the victim's testimony must be corroborated by at least circumstantial evidence.

The Constitution guarantees non-discrimination and full application of the existing labour laws in the industrial sector. Women workers hardly get any protection from these laws. Widespread disregard of the existing labour legislation in the government sector where majority workers are women is a rule rather than an exception. Existing practices in industrial workplaces enable the management to bypass its statutory obligations. Preferential recruitment of unmarried women and extending the period of probation of women workers beyond the statutory period deprives many of these legitimate/legal rights. Despite a rapid increase in the number of women workers in the informal sector, their rights are not protected by law.

A wide gap exists between the rights and status of women guaranteed by the Constitution and those imposed on them by social norms and practices reflected in personal laws. The family laws are based on personal laws of the respective religious community into which a person is born. Thus, civil laws and personal laws co-exist perpetuating male-female disparities with regard to marriage, divorce, guardianship, custody of children and inheritance.

Under the Muslim law, marriage is a contract between two individuals and to make it valid the consent of both partners in the presence of two witnesses is essential. With regard to child marriage, the law states that should a girl be married off by her parents during infancy, the marriage must be endorsed or dissolved by the girl on her attaining puberty. In a bid to restraint child marriage, the Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929 (amended in 1984) raised the minimum age of marriage for both women and men. The 1984 amendment fixed the minimum age at 18 for women and 21 years for men. But widespread contraventions of this law prove that its enforcement is very weak, and there is hardly any prosecution for any breach of this law. Although the law provides for punishment in cases of contravention, the Act has no provision to make such marriages invalid. Limited polygamy is permitted in Islam whereby a man is allowed to marry upto four wives at a time on condition that: (a) the husband has the means to maintain the wives according to their status; and (b) all the wives be given equal share of his love and affection and be treated by him with complete equality. But in the absence of any mechanism to enforce these directives, the senior wives generally become victims of the husband's cruelty and neglect. In an attempt to provide protection to these wives, the Family Laws Ordinance 1961 forbids a man to contract a marriage during the subsistence of an existing marriage without the prior permission in writing of the Arbitration Council on certain grounds and of the wife/wives. The punishment consists in the immediate payment of the entire dower or mahr (a fixed sum of money agreed to be paid by the husband to the wife). Prompt dower is immediately payable to the wife on demand and deferred dower is payable on dissolution of marriage. The punishment also includes imprisonment upto one year or fine upto taka 5000 or both. However, the Ordinance has no provision to make the subsequent marriage illegal. Under the Muslim law, divorce can be had in any of the following manner: (a) mutual consent of the husband and the wife without court's intervention; (b) a judicial decree on request of the wife on one or more grounds specified in the Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act 1939 and the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961; and (c) divorce by the husband at will without assigning any reason.

However, the right of talak (divorce), where a marriage is irrevocably and immediately dissolved by simply pronouncing the intention in front of witnesses, has been modified by the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961. Under the procedure to be followed, talak does not become effective immediately. A period of 90 days would have to intervene between the date of serving the notice to the Union Parishad chairman (the lowest tier of the local government system in Bangladesh) and the divorced wife and the date when the divorce becomes effective, and in the meantime to attempt reconciliation through the Arbitration Council formed with the chairman of the Union Parishad and nominees of the husband and wife.

The right to divorce at will is not enjoyed by a Muslim wife unless her husband delegates such right on her in the marriage deed (kabin) registered by the Muslim Marriage Registrar. However, she can obtain a divorce through a court decree, which is an uncertain, lengthy and costly process involving complicated procedure. Despite the legal reforms, gender discrimination still persists in the sphere of marriage and divorce.

Under the Muslim law, the wife inherits a fixed share of one-eighth of the deceased husband's estate if he leaves behind any child or children. If he does not leave behind any child or children, the wife inherits a quarter of the husband's estate.

A daughter, who is an only child, inherits half the estate of her late father or mother. If there is more than one daughter and no son, then the daughters jointly inherit two-thirds of the estate. However, if there is a son (or sons), the daughter's or each of the daughter's share will be equal to half of the son's or half of each of the son's share. In all cases within the family man inherits more than the woman does. Thus, in the field of inheritance also, personal laws continue to remain grossly gender discriminatory.

Under the Muslim law, the mother is never entitled to guardianship of property of her children. It lies with the father and after him with his father and brothers. However, the mother is entitled to the care and custody of her sons until they attain seven years of old and of her daughters till attaining puberty.

The laws, as modified by the Guardian and Wards Act of 1890, state that the welfare of the child is more important than the rights of the parents. A mother may also have her child beyond the specified ages if the court is satisfied that it would not be well looked after by the father. The mother may also apply to the court for guardianship of the child in the absence of male agnatic near relations. But it involves expensive and time-consuming litigation over a long period. The father can dispose of the child's property for its legal necessity, but the mother cannot do so without the prior permission of the court even if she is the appointed guardian of the child. A Muslim mother is entitled to maintenance from her son if he is solvent financially.

The existing law requires that every Muslim marriage solemnised must be registered. There has also been an enactment titled Marriage and Divorce Registration Act, 1974.

Again, despite the existence of a law to restrain child marriage, the girls are being married off well below the minimum age of 18 years by false declaration of such age before the Marriage Registrar. However, it is difficult to enforce this law due to the absence of compulsory birth registration in Bangladesh, particularly in the rural areas before 2001 when it was made compulsory. Although religion has made provisions for dower, the payment is rarely made. The society has made provisions for dowry (money, jewelry, and luxury items presented by the bride's guardians at marriage), and it has become a tradition though it is prohibited under the Dowry Prohibition Ordinance 1985 and also a punishable offence. Non-payment of dowry, more often than not, brings disaster to the lives of many women.

While the civil laws are applicable to the Hindu community, marriage, divorce, inheritance and guardianship, which relate to the private sphere, are governed by the Hindu Personal Laws. These laws have remained unchanged since 1947, though Hindu law has been substantially changed in India after 1947.

In the Hindu religion, marriage is a sacrament, not a contract. The foremost duty of a Hindu father is to marry her daughters off. The girl's consent in marriage is not required; nor is divorce possible; and unrestricted polygamy is allowed. The father is always the preferred guardian of his children, while the mother can be the guardian, her rights are inferior to those of the father. Not all daughters of a man are equally eligible to inherit. In order of priority, unmarried daughters and married daughters can inherit in the absence of any son, and in the presence of a son no daughter can inherit any property of the father. But daughter inherits mother's self acquired property (stridhan). A Hindu widow inherits life-interest in husband's property like a son and that only in non-agricultural property, otherwise in husband's agricultural property she has only a charge of maintenance. To raise status of women in public life government has taken certain affirmative actions through various legislations. Reservation of seat for election of women members in the Union Parishad, Pourashava, City Council and District Council, and of one of the two vice chairmen of Upazila Parishad has been made. Draft women policy has come with promises for raising of status of women but due to stiff resistance by the traditionalists it has not yet been finalized. Hindu law permits adoption, but only of boys. [Khaleda Salahuddin]

'''''Violence against women''''' The United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995 recognises violence against women as one of the crucial problems with the relationship between men and women. The Conference observes that women are subjected to acts of violence by men throughout the world. However, the extent of violence against women in developing countries is much greater than that in developed countries.

Generally speaking, violence against women means forcible acts of physical, psychological or sexual abuse of women. This kind of violence may occur on' individual level or in the family or within the general community. The violence derives essentially from unequal social positions and unequal rights of men and women. In the male-dominated civilization the subordinate status of women is manifested in various rules and regulations, rites and practices, and manners and customs which are directly or indirectly used for perpetrating violence against women. For the women to remain confined within the home, to wear burkhas (veils), to have unequal right of inheritance, to play a subordinate role in the family and in the society, and countless other discriminatory practices are indeed a kind of silent violence' against women. And this is what physical and sexual violence against women originates from.

Violence against women is a serious problem in Bangladesh. Fourteen per cent of maternal deaths in the country are caused by violence against women. Acid attacks on women are quite commonplace. Women seriously wounded in violence are admitted to hospitals and health centres almost everyday. Reports on human rights indicate that acts of crime against women are gradually escalating.

The main forms of violence against women are: sexual abuse, rape, injury and murder, female infanticide/ foeticide, fatwa-dictated abuse of women, injury and murder related to dowry demands, marriage or divorce, incest, prostitution, and trafficking in women.

Acts of domestic abuse constitute the most universal form of violence against women. Political, social, cultural and religious practices forced women into a subordinate position to men. The Constitution of Bangladesh proclaims that women shall have equal rights with men in all spheres of the State and of public life. To put the principle into practice, the government also enacted various laws at different times for preventing violence against women.

The government has established the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs with a view to eliminating violence against women as well as achieving other development goals. The Ministry has taken a number of measures to eliminate abuse of women. These include (a) provision of legal aid through newly created organisations such as Legal Aid Committee, Women Assistance Programme, and Prevention of Oppression on Women Cell; (b) provision of accommodation, medical treatment and primary education for abused women and children at the Abused Women and Children's Accommodation and Rehabilitation Centres, and giving them training in different trades; (c) establishing Employment Exchange Information Centre for women, and conducting training courses on computer operation, shorthand, typewriting etc for them with a view to facilitating their employment and empowerment.

The Government of Bangladesh welcomed different steps taken by the United Nations and other development agencies to eliminate violence against women. It may be mentioned that Bangladesh acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 1984, excepting a few of its Articles. Bangladesh also endorsed the measures recommended in the World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995 to eliminate violence against women which was one of the twelve issues on the agenda of the Conference. [Nilufar Parvin]

'''''Women in Civil Service''''' No detailed information exists on the number of women in the civil service in British India (c 1757-1947). Yet, one gets an impression that their number in administrative apparatus during that period was insignificant. In fact, during the early years women were legally debarred to enter the higher administrative posts. They were mostly employed in the Medical Services, Indian Educational Service, Provincial Educational Service, and in the Posts and Telegraph Department. At lower level they were allowed to enter the clerical services in the Home Department, Directorate of Intelligence Bureau, Finance, Security Printing, Defense, Armed Forces, Geological Survey of India, Explosives Sector, Labour and Lands, All-India Radio, Military Accounts, and miscellaneous posts in the Central Board of Revenue.

After its creation in 1947, Pakistan had kept intact the system of civil service developed by the British. Although the 1956 and 1962 Constitutions of Pakistan ensured equality of opportunity for all citizens with regard to public employment, in reality the situation was quite different. The recruitment rules adopted at the central level allowed the women to enter most of the central services, including the Audit and Accounts Service, Military Accounts Service, Income Tax Service, Postal Service, but they were not eligible to enter the All-Pakistan Services, i.e., the Civil Service of Pakistan (CSP) and the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP). Nevertheless, women were appointed increasingly to those professional services such as education and health both at the central and provincial levels as well as to the subordinate services. However, it is likely for anyone to assume that unequal representation of women in the civil service in Pakistan was aggravated due to their persistent social backwardness.

Though women in Bangladesh have since liberation been encouraged to enter all kinds of professions alongside the men, their persistent social backwardness prevented them to have equal access to the top levels of administration in the governmental hierarchy. Yet, beginning in the early 1970s, the government have been trying hard to involve and integrate women in the policy and decision making processes. Many steps were being undertaken during the last thirty-eight years to change the status and conditions of women through provisions of laws, executive orders, policy interventions and building of institutions. These steps and measures seem consistent with similar steps of the United Nations, e.g., the Declaration of International Women's Year in 1975, designation of UN Decade for Women (1975-85), adoption of Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Indeed, all these measures seem to have influenced the government a great deal to adopt policies and programmes: to enhance women's status, roles and rights. Moreover, the outcomes of four World Women Conferences in Mexico, Denmark, Nairobi and Beijing also have raised greater hopes for the Bangladeshi women.

The Constitution of Bangladesh gives equal right to women to enter any employment or office in the civil service. The Constitution not only ensures equality of sexes but also acknowledges the necessity of remedying the existing unequal representation by reserving certain percentage of civil service posts for the women. One of the most important laws regarding women's participation in administration is the reservation of quota for women's employment in the civil service. Initially the reserved quota for women was introduced in 1972, but became effective after a modified government order issued in 1976. The order ruled to reserve 10 percent women quota in all categories of vacancies subject to their fulfillment of basic qualifications. However, this reservation of quota was not to be applied in respect of recruitment to certain technical posts, posts in the defense services, and such other posts, which may be considered unsuitable for women. However, another order issued in July 1985 revised and partly modified the quota system with a view to increasing women's participation in the services. The order was made mandatory to all government, semi-government and autonomous bodies and different sector corporations in case of direct appointments. Now 10 percent gazetted posts and 15 percent non-gazetted posts are kept reserved for women in addition to merit, which is applicable to all types of public employment. So on the basis of merit and sex women can get entry to public service. They can also enter the public service through quotas for freedom fighters, tribals, and Ansars and VDP, if they belong to any of these groups. There is also a provision for reserving 60 percent posts of primary school teachers for women.

Another aspect of quota is that, it is applicable only at the entry level. Few women who had joined the public service beyond that level (contract, deputation or lateral entry) therefore did not derive any benefit from the quota system. Before the quota system was introduced, only 6.60 percent of jobs in the public sector excluding nationalized industries and statutory bodies went to women on the basis of merit. After the introduction of female quota in 1976, the number of female employees increased by about 3 percent and the quota system does not seem to have affected the pattern of employment in favour of women in any noticeable degree.

In spite of constitutional provisions for guaranteeing equal representation of women in all sectors and continuous support and cooperation from local and international agencies in advocating women rights, the situation of women employment in administration has remained marginal. After independence of Bangladesh, the number of women civil servants gradually increased. From 1972 to 1983 only 1417 women were recruited in fifteen cadres, and among these cadres women civil servants were mostly employed in Education and Health cadres and at the lower levels. These female civil servants represent only 4.89 percent of the total civil servants in different cadres of the civil service. Before the quota policy was introduced, the total number of civil servants (excluding public sector, industries) was 3,31,189. Out of this only 23,420 women were employed in the governmental services. At present, out of total public sector employment of 9,71,028, only 83,156 are women. About 8.56 percent are women and among them over 90 percent (74,884) were class III and class IV employees i.e., the vast majority of women in the civil service are low-paid and clerical staff. But women's position at the top administrative and managerial classes (about 10 percent) with higher prestige and pay is extremely meager. This is despite the reservation of quotas, 10 percent for class I and class II posts and 15 percent for class II and class IV posts.

In the Secretariat, the number of female employees is very insignificant. In the various Ministries and Divisions, out of 8611 employees, only 784 are females (about 9.1 percent). The civil servants are broadly divided into four categories, namely class I and class II gazetted officers, class III non-gazetted officers and class IV employees. Only 212 women out of 2070 gazetted officers are employed in class I and II. However, out of 6541 civil servants about 572 women non-gazetted officers and employees are employed in class III and IV. Currently, there is one woman secretary, one additional secretary, five joint secretaries and eight deputy secretaries. [Salma Ahmad]

'''''Women in Development''''' is a relatively recent addition to development vocabulary and, as a concept, reaffirms that women have a significant role to play in social and economic development both nationally and globally. WID requires that women are associated with development activities and an environment is created to make their participation possible. Women in Bangladesh often suffer from the traditional value system of a patriarchal society and gender discrimination. Women do not have adequate access to and are deprived of many benefits from services in education, health, employment and governance. They give birth to children, contribute to their care and work in managing household work, but often do not get proper recognition. Women are more likely to be employed without the benefit of legal or Institutional support is evident from the fact that 84% of women in rural and 59% in urban areas are employed as unpaid family workers. Women in Bangladesh work 21 hours more than men do in a week and although the female household labor is treated as economic activity, it is not counted for in estimating national income. Female labour in family based small and cottage industries is also not accounted for. Identity of a woman is frequently determined by the occupation and social status of the male head of the family. Even within the family, especially in rural areas, women get the lesser share of food and healthcare as well as of inherited property. The Constitution of Bangladesh recognizes equal rights of women but the family laws and laws relating to religious rites put men and women on unequal platforms. Women emancipation movements and efforts in women empowerment open new avenues for their broader participation in economic activities and also for recognition of women as agents for change and development.

The women's rights movement has been demanding a uniform, non discriminatory Civil Code to govern matters under religion-based personal laws. Numerous women's rights groups have lobbied for legislative uniformity for all citizens, and the two major political parties have in previous election manifesto made a few concessions to the need for eliminating discrimination. The [[Bangladesh Mahila Parishad|bangladesh mahila parishad]] brought out for the first time a draft model Uniform Family Code, after the culmination of several seminars and workshops on the subject. Since 1994, several other organizations collaborated with Mahila Parishad to try to improve upon the draft and make the model truly representative as a uniform, common law for all Bangladeshi, irrespective of gender or religion. This draft code by the Bangladesh Mahila Parishad was a first breakthrough as a decidedly 'Uniform Laws.'' In 1996, Bangladesh Mahila Parishad and Ain O Shalish Kendra jointly brought out an improved version of the original draft of Uniform Family Code, and also formulated a charter of benefits that should ideally result from a Uniform Personal Code, but no further progress has occurred due to governmental inaction.

The NGO Periodic (Shadow) Report 2004 on CEDAW, UFC has strongly recommended for the development of women in the PRSP document. Based on the discussion in the UN.

CEDAW committee meeting in July 2004, made some suggestions to the Bangladesh Government e.g define discrimination particularly for domestic violence, marital rap etc, training for judicial, health and legal personnel difference in personal rights be removed by introducing Uniform Family Code.

Though some gaps still exist within the present legal procedure, women's access to the legal system has improved over the years. Some laws have been enacted which have widened the way to establish women's rights in all spheres of life. In fact establishments of the mediation court, enactment of the Acid Throwing Act and the formation of women and children Repression Prevention Tribunal have been considered as positive steps of Bangladesh Government in this regard.

Women in employment in Bangladesh number about 25 million. Only about 10,000 of them are in administrative and managerial services. Nearly 79% work in agriculture (including fishery and forestry), 9.9% work in manufacturing and transport sectors, 5.3% are service sector workers, 3% are professional/ technical workers, 2.2% are sales workers, and 0.6% are clerical workers. This distribution does not account for employment of women in Food for Work activities, especially in construction and maintenance of rural roads. A large segment of women is in self-employed, especially in crop cultivation, fishery, poultry, kitchen, gardening, homestead afforestation, cane and bamboo craft. About 34% of unpaid workers in small and cottage industries are women. They constitute a significant share of urban labour-intensive industries, especially in garments sector, where their share is more than 80% of all employees.

In addition to providing labour, women contribute to development by way of being entrepreneurs and creating investment and employment opportunities for others. Handicraft is the most preferred area of women entrepreneurship. These income generating activities in both rural and urban areas cover mainly sewing of cloths, drawing, batik, and boutique, embroidery, and food sales. Urban working women are employed at sales counters, reception desks, and advertising agencies as well as in educational and health services, legal services, performing arts, print and electronic media, management services, research organizations and NGOs.

Not many women work at the top administrative level of the government. Only two among the 51 secretaries, one among the 80 additional secretaries, three among 251 joint secretaries and seven among 474 deputy secretaries are women. In the banking sector, only one woman works as general manager. In the police administration, 1956 among 1,24,000 polices are women. One out of 1966 woman is D.I.G, four are additional, 253 are A.S.I and 1331 women are working as constables, and in the armed forces, there is only one woman brigadier in the medical core. In National Review Board, only one woman works as an executive member with men. There are 18 women working as tax cadre in the tax department. Four among 18 are the tax commissioner, 8 among 18 are assistant tax commissioner and rest 6 women are working as joint commissioners. Women can complete with men in seeking government jobs, but there are also reserve quotas for them. The number of women employees in government service is about 85,000 (8.6% of total) of whom only 1% are in ministries, 16.5% are in the autonomous organizations and 82.5% are in general offices. They hold 7% of class-I jobs, 3% class-II, 75% class-III, and 15% class-IV jobs.

Women have a limited role in decision making at the national level since among many factors their participation in politics and Jatiya Sangsad is marginal. Of the 300 directly elected seats of the Sangsad women occupy only 23 seats, and about 40 ministers in the cabinet only 4 are women. Total number of 57 women candidates from different political parties were contested in 62 seats in the 9th Jatiya Sangsad election. All elected women were contested against men except one. The 9th Sangsad was formed with the 345 seats including both direct and 45 reserved seats. In Sangsad 68 among 345 are women members. Out of 45 reserved seats, Awami Leaque occupied 35, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) 5, Jatiya Party 4 and other political parties received only one seat as per distribution. All the nominations came straightly from the parties and candidates were all elected without any contest.

The 15-member presidium and secretariat of Bangladesh Awami Leaque have 3 women and out of the 75 members of its national executive committee 8 are women. The 12-member standing committee of the BNP has only one woman, and its 260-member national executive committee has 12 women. The 31-member standing executive committee of Jatiya Party (Ershad) has only 2 women and its 200-member national executive committee has 15 women. The 237-member of the Majlish-i-Shura of Jamaat-e-Islami has 35 women, but there is no woman member in its Majlish-i-amela. The 33-member central committee of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (C.P.B) has only three women. Women members are also very few in the elected bodies of local government. For example, among the 4,276 chairmen of the Union Parishads only 22 are women and of the 38,484 elected members of these parishads the number of women is only 85.

As an affirmative step Bangladesh has announced the National Policy on women in 1997 but failed to put forward any concrete proposal on how the policy was to be realized because of lack of understanding with the major opposing party in the Jatiya Sangsad. Besides, the Fundamentalist groups and the Jamaat-e-Islami are totally against the policy.

WID activities are fairly widespread in the NGO sector. The apex body of NGOs in Bangladesh ADAB has a 15-member executive committee with five women. Thirty eight of its 886 member organizations work for women. But unfortunately, ADAB was deadlocked in 2001, because of increasing its internal leadership conflict. The majority member organizations turned out and formed another apex body in the name of The Federation of NGOs in Bangladesh (FNB). The 21- member executive committee of FNB has only 4 women organizations. Now the 85 of its 479 member organizations work for women and their activities include organizing women in groups and associations, raising their social awareness, ensuring their increased access to credit and income generating activities, mobilizing them in protecting basic human rights, providing them training in livelihood skills and creating increased health and education services for them..

There are many barriers to participation of women in development. Women are forced to work in agriculture or other sectors at wages much below the usual rates. Apart from wage distribution, women face problems in entry to labour market in general, and even if some access is available they do not have the opportunity to weigh the' specific jobs against compensation or are able to influence decisions. Target groups for self-employment schemes of the government and majority of non-government organizations include poor and landless women but since the questions of reaching the poor and of designing and implementing programs for the poorest of the poor remain wide open, women of marginal families can hardly avail of the benefits of NGO programs.

A majority precondition for participation of women in development to be effective is the empowerment and enhancement of their capabilities as well as of their status to have and exercise rights in decision making. Development of Women started in Bengal as a movement against early marriage, the pardah system, and injustice to women in the name of religious norms. Added to the agenda later were the rights of women to have education and to participate in vote and elections, peasant movement, politics, economic activities and administration. At the international level, organizations are now emphasise on participation of women in programs of poverty alleviation, demographic transition, and services relating to basic needs.

The constitution prohibits discrimination against women on grounds of their religion, caste, or place of birth. The constitution incorporates the principle of special representation of women in local self-governing bodies. In line with this provision, three women members are elected to each of the union councils and municipal councils of the country. There are also forty five reserve seats for women in the Jatiya Sangsad.

The government has established Women Rehabilitation Board, Rehabilitation and Welfare Foundation, National Women's Organization, Department of Women Affairs and separate Ministry of Women and Children Affairs. The Department of Women Affairs has offices in all 64 districts and in 136 upazilas. The National Women's Organization implements its programs of women development with its offices in 236 upazilas.

The government promotes the interests of women through activities like construction of hostels for working women, assistance to women in slum areas, establishment of day care centers for children of women in work, introduction of separate buses for women to take them to and from work places, maintaining women's quota in recruitment for government jobs, implementing a women entrepreneur development project, creating opportunities for self-employment of both urban and rural women and training of women in vocational and technical skills.

The economic empowerment, security and creation of job opportunity for women have been given top priority in the Constitution of Bangladesh, CEDAW charter, Declaration of Human Rights charter and the National Policy of women.

Bangladesh ratified the UN Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against women (CEDAW) with the reservation on article 2 and article 16 and actively participated in the Beijing Platform for action that identified 12 major barriers to development of women and also the steps to be taken by governments, international community and NGOs to overcome them. The government of Bangladesh and NGOs have undertaken action plans in the light of recommendations of the Beijing Forum and the government organizations involved in implementation of these plans include ministries of agriculture, forests and environment, health and family planning, social welfare, information, planning, youth and sports, culture, foreign affairs, science and technology and education. Organizations other than government ministries, departments and directorates involved in the process are non-profit voluntary organizations, women's associations, mass organizations, labor associations, professional associations, clubs, network, forum and NGOs. [Nibedita Das Purkayastha]

'''''Women in trade and commerce''''' Women's participation in the labour force has been increasing in Bangladesh. But in general, employment opportunities are very limited. The government of Bangladesh and Non-Government Organisations undertake programmes to alleviate poverty by creating employment opportunities. One way to alleviate poverty is to empower women economically, especially through projects that encourage women to engage themselves in entrepreneurial income generating activities. Historically, in both developed and developing countries, male entrepreneurs by far outnumber female entrepreneurs. Likewise, women in Bangladesh are yet to be in the main stream of entrepreneurial activities. The presence of female entrepreneurs is insignificant except in micro-enterprises. Most women entrepreneurs are 'micro-entrepreneurs' who operate in the informal sector concentrated mainly in rural markets. However, a few of them are found in organised sector such as the garment industry.

There is considerable evidence to indicate that women are more disadvantaged than men in relation to the opportunities arising from social structures and dynamics. First, most women are not much aware of their own abilities and business opportunities that they can take advantage of, due to lack of education and restricted social mobility. Second, even if otherwise qualified, women often do not have the kind of access to credit or control over capital that is required for taking risks in business ventures. Third, there are legal barriers or conventions that create bottlenecks for women. For example, if they apply to commercial banks for even relatively small loans, they are required to have a male partners. For this reason, if they want to undertake relatively large scale business operations, women entrepreneurs are often required to team up with male partners. Similarly, women's ability to negotiate terms and conditions of institutional credit is critically affected by the predominant gender ideology. Women entrepreneurs face some special problems too. Men tend to take women entrepreneurs less seriously. This has discouraging impact on women. For many women entrepreneurs, it is an uphill task to compete in the market dominated by male entrepreneurs. Traditional mobility constraints and social conventions discourage women to undertake business negotiations with male strangers.

A recent country level report presented by the International Labor Organisation points out some factors that render Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs additionally disadvantaged. These observations are based on a survey that mostly relates to the small enterprises outside microcredit operations. According to the report, prior to starting business, male entrepreneurs have much longer work experience (4.9 years) in similar businesses than women have (only 0.8 years). Most male entrepreneurs (73.8% of the sample) could generate a sizable equity from their own savings while only 40.1% of women could generate some savings. As a result, women faced more difficulty in meeting the banks' debt-equity ratio requirement, which in turn disqualified women for bank loan. Because of restricted mobility of the female entrepreneurs, most female-owned enterprises (86%), of necessity, are located within the home premises. For this reason, women often lose locational advantages of doing business. Most importantly, initial capital available to a female entrepreneur to start a business was found on average to be one sixth of that available to a male entrepreneur to start the same type of business.

There is a new trend that transcends the limitation of micro-credit. An increasing number of enterprises are being set up by women in trade and services sectors. All such women come from wealthy families and therefore, they are able to overcome some of the institutional obstacles. Women owned boutiques, beauty saloons and restaurants are very common in major cities, as are family-based catering operations. In the professional field, women architects and engineers have begun to open up their own consulting businesses rather than work for firms run by men where their talents were often marginalised or discounted. It is, however, not unusual to find women running businesses such as groceries, health clinics, or cold storage facilities, or travel and advertising agencies. Running of schools, particularly English medium ones, or tutorials, now attract many women entrepreneurs. A private university has also been established by a women entrepreneur. Although very few in number, some women have established their own garment factories. Incidentally, Baishakhi Garments, one of the oldest garments manufacturing factories, was established by a woman in 1980.

Women entrepreneurs are mobilizing their social capital. Women in urban areas have begun to realise the advantages of uniting in order to press for their rights. In fact, women entrepreneurs of Dhaka formed an association, which tries to promote the interests of women in business. To promote women's entrepreneurial activities, MIDAS (Micro Industries Development Assistance Society) instituted a Women Entrepreneurship Development Committee headed by a leading woman entrepreneur of the country. This committee helps women to start businesses by offering collateral free loans. At monthly meetings, women' entrepreneurs are given counseling on various aspects of business activities.

Historically, women in Bangladesh have actively participated in many economic activities, especially in the household and farming activities. Official statistics, however, do not record their contribution to GDP. A sizable number of such women has always been entrepreneurs in the sense that they used their own or borrowed capital to undertake business enterprises such as raising farm animals or kitchen gardening to earn a livelihood. This entrepreneurial class emerged very visibly because of the introduction of micro-credit by Grameen Bank. Individually, these entrepreneurs are very small in size but as a group, they constitute the largest women entrepreneurial class in Bangladesh.

The government plays an important role in fostering conditions for entrepreneurial success. Government investment in women's development is the most effective means of improving health, nutrition, hygiene, educational standards and entrepreneurship. The government encourages governmental and non-governmental collaboration to create an environment in which female entrepreneurship can develop. A large number of programmes and projects are implemented to empower women and eradicate poverty. Apart from the socio-cultural constraints, a major obstacle for women to become an entrepreneur is their lack of access to credit. With the success of Grameen Bank in its micro-credit schemes, other large NGOs and nationalised commercial banks undertook micro-credit programmes. These programmes encourage women to become entrepreneurs. Recently, the number of women entrepreneurs has increased. The micro-enterprises started by women with the help of micro-finance enable women to improve the quality of life for themselves and for their families. Many women prefer self-employment. They do not want to work for others because of rigid job-requirements, lack of childcare services, unacceptable working conditions, rigid hours, job frustration, gender-discrimination etc.

The Fifth Five Year Plan (1997-2002) stipulates amending current laws with a view to promoting women's development. As for micro-credit, the government created an institutional framework to support capacity building. The innovative role of Grameen Bank has had tremendous positive impact on the development of female entrepreneurs. Following Grameen Bank, many NGOs now contribute to the growth and development of women entrepreneurs, although the help is limited to small-scale enterprises. The Rural Enterprise Project of BRAC creates special opportunities for women entrepreneurs in non-farm activities such as iodized salt production, hybrid paddy cultivation, hand-made paper production, and garment waste processing. The programme support enterprises of BRAC provide essential inputs to its group members in an effort to reduce their business risks. The entrepreneurs, however, face problems in marketing their products. They operate primarily in limited local markets. In case of milk, eggs, poultry, handicrafts, processed foods, beef-fattening, etc some marketing network is being gradually developed. This helps development of women entrepreneurship in the rural areas. [Najma Siddiqi]

'''''Women in journalism''''' Bangali women first appeared on the scene of journalism in the field of editing periodicals. Fortnightly Bangamahila was the first periodical edited by a woman. It was first published on 14 April 1870. Its editor was Mokshamdayini Mukhopadhyay. The first monthly gender-based magazine run by women was Anathini published in July 1875. The first weekly magazine edited by a woman was Bangabasini launched on 28 September 1883. The first monthly magazine edited by a Muslim woman Begum Sufia Khatun was Anlesha which was first published in Baishakh 1328 (1921) AD. Papya was the first quarterly magazine edited by a woman from Dhaka. Edited by Bibhabati Sen, this illustrated periodical was meant for children. The Bulbul edited by Shamsunnahar and Mohammad Habibullah used to be brought out thrice a year. Its first issue was published in 1933, which was converted into a monthly from 1936. The first weekly edited by a Muslim woman was Begum launched on 20 July 1947. Nurjahan Begum and Sufia Begum were responsible for editing it. But from its 12th issue onwards (2 November) Nurjahan Begum alone has been editing it.

The first periodical edited by women from this part of Bengal was Banganari. It was first published from Mymensingh in 1923 with Chinmoyee Devi as its editor. Tripura Hitoyishi edited by Urmila Sinha used to be published from Comilla. She was in charge of editing it from 1924 onwards. The quarterly Papya edited by Bibhabati Sen and published from Dhaka in 1927 was transformed into a monthly from 1928.

The illustrated monthly Jayasree edited by Leelabati Nag was first published from Dhaka in April 1931. Kamalbashini Devi was the principal editor of fortnightly Asrami published from Rangpur. It was first published on 1 January 1941. Sultana was brought out on 14 January 1949 as the first women's weekly published from East Bengal. Its editor was Sufia Kamal and Jahanara Arzoo. Naobahar was published from Dhaka in 1949 under the editorship of Mahfuza Khatun. Monthly Manashi was published in Aswin 1357 (1950 AD) from Pabna with Kumari Jyotsna Rani Datta as editor.

Although women were initially involved in editing newspapers, they gradually entered other areas of journalism as well. However, the entry of women in journalism has been rather slow in this part of Bengal during the Pakistan era. Prominent among them were Laila Samad, Noorjahan Begum, Jahanara Arzoo, Mafruha Chowdhury, Mahfuza Khatun, Hasina Ashraf, Selina Hossain, Baby Moudud and Tahmina Sayeed.

The scenario has changed a lot since the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent state in 1971. Now, many educated women are entering the profession of journalism and their number is increasing day by day. This is true not only for the print media but also for the electronic media.

According to a survey carried out by the Press Institute of Bangladesh in 1990, the representation of women in the print and electronic media of Dhaka was around 5% (4% in newspapers, 5% in radio and 6% in television). Most of the women employed in newspapers were working in the editorial section with a handful in reporting assignments. It has been found in the survey that although there is less discrimination between men and women in enrolment to communication courses at the university, opportunities for women to enter the profession are not uniform or equal. The recruitment policy does not favour women and not all jobs in journalism are open to them. Due to social and cultural constraints, the job of reporting and assignments which entail field-work are not considered suitable for women. Therefore most of them are found to be doing desk-work in editorial sections. The situation in the electronic media, i.e. Radio and Television, is a bit better than the newspapers in the sense that here the proportion of women staff is higher. This is mainly because of the reserve quota for women in government jobs. [Helal Uddin Ahmed and Mahbubul Alam]

'''''Women in politics''''' Women's place in Bangladesh politics has progressed through four distinct stages: (i) leadership level; (ii) quota system; (iii) electoral politics; and (iv) women's movement. The nature and scope of women's participation in politics of the country is laid down in the Constitution of 1972. It guarantees equal rights to both sexes while specifically stipulating in article 29 that 'No citizen shall, on the grounds of ... sex ... be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office in the service of the Republic. The declared intention was to enhance women's participation at the national level politics and tap women's potential leadership capabilities. In the light of the existing socio-economic and cultural matrix of Bangladesh a constitutional provision empowered the Jatiya Sangsad to create reserved seats for women in the Jatiya Sangsad to be elected by the elected members of the legislature.

The debates regarding women's reserved seats in the legislature again is not a new phenomenon. It can be traced to the discussions of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, which had only two women representatives. These two ladies had previously demanded 10% quota of reserved seats for women at the legislatures at the Franchise Committee of the Round Table Conference in 1935, but managed to get the assurance of only 3% quota. Once Pakistan became independent, quest for increased reserved seats for women became an issue. But the demands for increased number of reserved seats for women went unheeded and at the final meeting of the Constituent Assembly when the draft bill for the charter of women's rights was discussed 3% quota for the women in the national and provincial assemblies were kept in tact. However, the 1956 Constitution of Pakistan, in order to guarantee more space and scope for women's participation, accepted dual voting rights of the women, thus accepting the principle of female suffrage for women's reserved seats on the basis of women's special territorial constituencies as well as their rights to vote for the general constituencies. Women's interest in legislative politics were also evidenced by the fact that in the provincial election of the then East Bengal three women got elected to the provincial assembly.

But the gradual deterioration of the democratic order and imposition of martial law in 1958 left only a few avenues for the women to press forward their demands for democratic representation in the legislature. And all throughout Ayub era ie between 1958 and 1969 the scope of women's legislative politics was tightly kept within the gambit of state patronage. The 1962 Constitution of Ayub Khan abolished female suffrage for women's reserved seats on the basis of women's territorial constituencies, which was granted under the 1956 Constitution, and provision was made for only seven reserved seats for the women to be indirectly elected by the male members of the legislature. The mode of election of women from the reserved seats made them dependent on their male counterparts. That was the beginning of women's token representation at the national legislature of the country. Its manifestations are still being felt in the post-independence period of Bangladesh's history.

In the context of the prevailing socio-economic conditions of women, the Constitution of Bangladesh made provision for continuation of reserved seats for the women to be elected by the elected members of the Jatiya Sangsad. The number of such seats was increased to 15 although, however, the Constitution says, the provision is to be withdrawn once the condition of women will improve.

Thanks to the mode of election, these seats act as a 'vote bank' for the majority parliamentary party. Naturally questions have been raised as to genuine effectiveness of women's representation in the Jatiya Sangsad. Despite such misgivings, the government raised the number of seats from 15 to 30 for another ten years just days before the parliamentary election of 1979. Intense debates concerning women's quota in the legislature and its mode of election continued both inside and outside the Sangsad following the lapse of the provision. Women's organisations, especially a coalition of 17 women's organisations called Oikkobaddha Nari Samaj in its 17-point demands asked for the increase of number of reserved seats to be directly elected. But the system of 30 reserved seats for the women to be indirectly elected was incorporated in 1990 for another ten years through a constitutional amendment.

Devolution of power to the local self-government is fundamental in any functioning democracy. The union parishad, the lowest tier of the government, thus, plays an important role in this endeavour. But women's representation at this important local self-government has been intermittent and ineffective. During the British rule in 1946 the union parishad consisted of both elected and nominated members but there was no specific provisions for the nomination of women per se. As a matter of fact women for the first time got the right to vote at the local bodies in 1956 when the election was held on the basis of adult franchise and not depended on the possession of property, tax payment and educational qualifications for voting in local bodies. Following the independence, for the first time in the history of the land, statutory representation of women was provided for at the lowest tier of the local government. So far six union parishad elections (1973, 1977, 1984, 1988, 1993, 1997) have been held and the number of elected female chairmen has risen from 1 in 1973 to 24 in 1993 and 20 in 1997. Provision for nominated women members were made mandatory by 1976 and 1984 ordinances ie one-third reserved seats for women are to be nominated by the upazila parishad, and women members of upazila parishad are to be nominated by the government.

Participation of active women in the local government units opened an opportunity for them to be associated with the power structure. The method of indirect election of the women by their elected male counterparts, (similar method followed at the national level) proved to be effective through the induction of women from influential and powerful local elite families. A parliamentary amendment in September 1997 has made the provision for one-third reserved seats for women subject to direct election, which has far reaching impacts on women's active participation in politics. According to the Election Commission source some 46,000 women out of a total of 2,04,908 candidates contested in the union parishad election in December 1997. About 44,421 contested for 12,954 reserved seats while the rest fought against male opponents. Since their constituencies are larger than those of their male counterparts they have to work hard and put in long hours. One hundred women have won from the general seats and there are now 20 elected female chairpersons. For the first time women belonging to landless or marginal farmers have been elected instead of women from the influential families.

Neither Bangladesh Nationalist Party ([[BNP|bnp]]) nor Awami League had put any woman candidate from the general seats during parliamentary election of 1979. Out of 2125 candidates only 17 were female contesting from 15 general seats and came out elected. But women's participation in mainstream electoral politics rose from 0.3% to 0.9%

Women's credibility as candidates was further enhanced during the election of 1986. Ruling Jatiya Party, for the first time, put up two women candidates from general seats. Awami League put up 8 candidates, including the party leader Sheikh Hasina from the general seats. Four other political parties also put up women candidates. In all 20 candidates contested from the general seats and 5 got elected. Women's participation enhanced from 0.9% to 1.3%. The term for the constitutionally guaranteed reserved seats for women expired in December 1987. The 1988 Jatiya Sangsad, thus, had no reserved seats. Women's electoral politics in general seats instead of intensifying declined sharply. Their participation rate came down from 1.3% to 0.7%. It was even lower than the rate of participation in 1979. A major reason for such trend was the boycott of the election by all major opposition parties.

The number of political parties that contested in the elections of 1991 was 75, of which 16 gave nominations to 47 women candidates. Only 8 of them got elected. In the seventh 1996 parliamentary election seven women, including Begum Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina got elected. This is a remarkable shift from the situation in 1979. At present, the percentage of women's mainstream electoral politics is 1.5% which is certainly an improvement compared to 0.3% in 1973. But it is still a far cry from women's mainstreaming into country's electoral politics.

Mobilisation of women through women's organisations had largely begun during the Pakistan era through voluntary social services for the rehabilitation of the refugees flowing into the country following the partition of 1947. Women's Voluntary Service was the first attempt to organise women outside the then ruling Muslim League. This organisation was the forerunner of the subsequent women's organisations like All Pakistan Women's Association, Federation of University Women and Karachi Business and Professional Women's Club. Subsequently, other professional women's organisations also came into being, but almost all of these organisations' main thrust had been welfare oriented and creation of social awareness among women like women's education, development of skills and income generation and setting up of child and mothercare centres. The All Pakistan Women's Association, however, played a significant role in pushing for the Family Laws Ordinance of 1961 and was in favour of reservation of seats for women in the national and provincial assemblies. But since APWA (All Pakistan Woman Association) was aligned with the government of the day its activities failed to highlight women's demands for creating their greater participation in politics. Only organisation with specific women's rights was the United Front for Women's Rights but it too could not successfully create any platform for pushing women's agenda.

Following independence of Bangladesh in 1971 the women's movement basically remained centred around welfare activities. It should, however, be mentioned that women had begun to take part in agitation politics as evidenced by their participation during the anti-Ayub movement of 1968-69 and formation of organisations like East Pakistan Mahila Sangram, which attempted to mobilize women in people's struggle against martial law and East Pakistan Mahila Parishad in 1970 with political and social demands specifically geared towards women's needs. They demanded election of sovereign parliament, direct election for the reserved seats for women, equal payment for the female workers (though the percentage of female workers were insignificant at the time), establishment of mother/child centres and shishu hospitals etc. But the growth of the nascent women's movement in Bangladesh was stunted due to steady deterioration of the democratic order of the country and the ideological inclination of the emergent women's organisations which were aligned with the then ruling party and sought to resolve women's issues within the gambit of socialist transformation of the society.

Women's participation in politics, however, remained peripheral despite state interventions to enhance their participation. But the impacts of worldwide consciousness among the women activities about the persistent inequality in gender relations created a new direction and impetus to women's movement the impact of which were felt in Bangladesh as well. In 1980s there emerged women's movement in Bangladesh, which many apprehended would be a replica of the West, but the movement soon was founded on indigenous feminists issues, roots, new leadership, new organisations and new modes of organisational behaviour. As the decade of 1980s rolled on there also emerged a new breed of women's organisations and leadership in Bangladesh besides hundreds of existing ones delivering social services and skill training. The new brand has more specific programmes in order to end discriminatory practices against women. Issues like violence against women, rape, dowry and fatwa deaths, trafficking of women, unequal wages, exploitation of women in labour intensive industries like garment, apathy of the traditional trade unions towards women labours' needs, rights of access to credit and means of production like land, unequal political and social right became rallying points for the women's organisations. Both urban and rural women were mobilized significantly, on the issues of violence, rape, dowry and fatwa deaths, acid throwing and the like which indicate the powerlessness, subordination and vulnerability of women in the society.

Violence against women has, thus, become the most emotive issue around which women came together on non-partisan basis. However, neither large-scale policy initiatives from the government have come forth to alleviate the situation for the women nor the women's organisations have been able to organise large-scale help, support, and shelter and provide alternative ways of living for the victims. At present, various women's organisations are working for the strategies adopted at the Platform of Action adopted at the Fourth World Conference in Beijing in 1995.

The role of United Nations in the context of internationalism has also helped intensify women's movement in Bangladesh. The Decade of Women (1975-85) helped increase women's consciousness about their rights as enunciated in the convention on Political Rights of Women in 1952. Subsequent adoption of Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination in 1979, three World Conferences in Mexico (1975), Nairobi (1985), and Beijing (1995) gave impetus to coalition building activities in Bangladesh. In late 1980s a coalition of about 20 organisations called Oikyabaddha Nari Samaj put forward far-reaching 17-point demands. This included among other things equal rights, ratification of CEDAW without any reservations, uniform civil code, increase of quota in the civil service, equal pay for the female garment workers, implementation of ILO legal rights like maternity leave with pay and other facilities, employment opportunities for landless and urban destitute women, and minimum pay for domestic helpers. The agenda of the coalition was successful in articulating the social and economic needs of the women. Mahila Parishad, the most organised one with its own legal aid cells and dedicated cadre, has successfully created platform to highlight women's agenda, and has claimed that the ratification of CEDAW in 1985 by the government of Bangladesh was done mainly due to their activities. The growing awareness of the women is evidenced by their concerted demonstrations when a women political activist was manhandled in public and her democratic rights were violated.

There is no doubt that women's movement in Bangladesh has played a commendable role in creating awareness and political consciousness among the women population of the country. Women's organisations have acted as forums for women's leadership training as well as channels to bring women's voices to proper perspectives and to the fore. Through seminars, workshops and writings they have highlighted the alarming lack of women's participation in shaping the public policy, which affect their everyday lives. But their consistent demand for power sharing and decision making process of the country has been met with intermittent and slow responses from the male dominated political system. There is not yet any Women's National Coalition, which can put women's issues on the national agenda.

Integration of women into the mainstream of the democratic order in Bangladesh has been slow, intermittent and difficult. The ideologies of classical democracy, and patriarchy, which shape the dispensation of the state discourse, make women's political participation difficult. As such women being poor and disadvantaged remained at the periphery of the system. Women's participation in politics in Bangladesh, no doubt, has made progress thanks to initiatives taken by the state. [Dilara Choudhury]

'''''Women in the War of Liberation''''' Women had played glorious roles in the War of Liberation. They very spontaneously participated in the Sangram Parishads (Resistance Councils) which were formed in various parts of the country prior to the beginning of the War of Liberation. Their participation further expanded during the course of the war. In camps of freedom fighters, many women also joined and took training alongside men in the guerilla fighting and use of weapons.

In various forms women fought in the War of Liberation. Women like Taraman (Bir Pratik), Kakan Bibi, Rahima Begum directly participated in the liberation war and fought in the field. The participation of many others took the forms of nursing the wounded fighters, giving shelter and hospitality and care to fighters in the field. Many women collected money, clothes and medicines for freedom fighters.

About two hundred thousand women, innocent and liberation activist, were raped by the enemy forces and many of them were burdened with [[War-babies|war-babies]]. In recognition of their role in the liberation war, they were later declared by government as Birangana or heroines. Due to social and cultural constraints many of these women refrained themselves from declaring their fate and accepting the honorific title. Though government announced to give state support to war-babies, most raped mothers handed their babies to foreign adopters.

Until now, there is no dependable public account of the activities and fate of the women freedom fighters. In 1990, a private association called Nari Grantha Prabartana was established with the objectives of highlighting the activities of women freedom fighters. Another organisation, Mahila Muktiyodha Samsad (Council of Women Freedom Fighters) was established in 1997. Currently, the Ministry in charge of the affairs of the War of Liberation is planning to record the role of women in the War of Liberation. [Sahida Begum]

'''''Women in literature and culture''''' From the late nineteenth century series of contribution of woman is witnessed in Bangla literature. Their writings are distinctive in view of literary excellence and originality. Social discrimination against women and autocracy of men induced the women-folk to float movement for asserting their self respect. At the initial stage though pathos was witnessed in their literature rather than the spirit of resistance, later it turned to be an attempt for asserting their self respect. Following is an evaluation of the contribution of the noted women writers and cultural activists in literature and culture.

''Literature'' Swarna Kumari Devi's (1855-1932) noted books of verse' are Gatha (1880), Kavita O Gan (1895). Best book of verse of Mankumari Basu (1863-1943) is Kavya-kusumanjali (1884). Her poems relate to society, nature, devotion to motherland, current affairs, juvenile issues and mythology. Kamini Roy's (1864-1933) poems are free from complexity and are absolutely imitation free. Her noted books are Alo O Chhaya' (1889), Pouranikee (1897), Deep O Dhup (1929), Nirmalya (1891), Ashok-Sangeet (sonnet, 1914), Jiban-pathe (sonnet, 1930) etc. Saralabala Sarkar (1875-1961) was a Vishnava poet. Her two books of poetry, Prabaha (1904) and Arghya (1951) are rich in rhythm, vocabulary and patriotism. Uma Devi's popular poetical work is Batayan, an anthology of fourteen sonnets. Her poems represent a picture of day to day life of the people. Mahmuda Khatun Siddiqua's' (1906-1977) three books of poetry are Pasharini (1931), Man O Mrttika (1960) and Aranyer Sur (1966). Sufia Kamal (1911-1999) was a poet, litterateur, social activist and organiser. She was all through vocal against autocracy, bigotry and communalism. Most notable of her books of poetry are Sanjher Maya (1938), Maya kavya (1951), Mon O Jiban (1957), Udatta Prithibi (1964), Prashanti O Prarthana, Diwana, Swanirbachita Kavita Samkalan etc. The subject matter of her poem includes love, nature, personal feelings, painful memory, national festivals, patriotism, War of Liberation, and religious feelings. Her poems represent emotion and simplicity of language. Her poems written during the War of Liberation in 1971 were later published as an anthology as Mor Jaduder Samadhi Pare. During the war she urged upon the women-society to do something for the sake of the native land through her poem Benibinyas Samoyto Ar Nai. The poems of Maitrayee Devi represent her thought on nature and life. Udita (1929), Chittachhaya (1938) are her noted works. Notable among Jahanara Arju's books are Neel Swapna (1962), Raudra Jhara Gan (1964), Crandasi Atmaja (1984). The noted works of Taslima Nasrin are Sikoray Bipul Ksudha (1986), Nirbasita Bahire Antare (1989), Atale Antareen (1991), Nirbachita Naree (1992), Nirbachita Nareer Kavita (1996).

Swarna Kumari Devi is mostly known as a prose writer and novelist of mid nineteenth century. She was the editor of monthly Bharati. Notable among her novels are Bidroha, Kahake, Swapnabani, Milanratri, Snehalata Ba Palita, and historical novels Phuler Mela, Mibar-raj, Huglir Imam Bari. Two novels of Nirupama Devi (1883-1951) are Annapurnar Mandir (1913) and Didi ((1915). Love and internal conflict of conjugal life are the main subject matter of her novels. The theme of her novels, style of writing and expression are simple. Anurupa Devi's (1882-1954) novels Poshyaputra (1911), Jyotihhara (1915), Bagdatta (1914), Mantrashakti (1915), Mahanisha (1919) are based on daily life activities and historical events. Her plot of novels are influenced by western theme. The literary works of Roquiah Sakhawat Hossain''' '''(1880-1932)''' '''represent a protest against the misuse of provision, reference to contemporary political events, social prejudice, education for women, social repression on women, women's rights, their mental and physical condition and also her progressive views for women's awakening. She also criticised the secluded and depressed condition of women in the male dominated society. Her most noted novel is Padmarag (1924). Nurunnessa Khatun Vidyavinodini Sahitya Swaraswati (1894-1975) was the president of Vangiya Moslem Mahila Sangha. Her notable novels are Swapnadrasta (1923), Janoki Bai (1924), Atmadan (1925), Bhagyachakra, Bidhilipi, Niati. In her novels she depicts historical events, a vivid picture of Muslim family and domestic tale based on reality and in very simple term. Daulatunnessa Khatun's''' '''(1918-1997) novel Pather Parosh (1957) is not only the protest against the contemporary immorality and deception but also describes the eternal characteristics of vested interest. Prabhavati Devi Saraswati (1905-1972) wrote more than one hundred novels such as Amba (1922), Ayusmati (1923), Bijita (1923), Jagaran (1333 BS), Samsar Pather Yatra etc. Sarasibala Basu's novels represent simple and lucid language. Pryashchitta (1919), Shibali (1921), Shuktara (1922) and Rekha (1922) are her notable novels. Shekh Andu, Mishti Sarbat (1920), Abak (1925), Namita (1918), Janma Aparadhi (1920), Janma Avishapta (1921), Mangalmath (1327 BS), Imandar (1922), Mahimadevi (1923) are the noted books of Shailabala Goshjaya (1894-1974). Nilima Ibrahim's (1921-2002) novels Bis Shataker Meye (1958), Ek Path Dui Bank (1958), Keyabana Sancharini (1958) and Pathasranta are based on the problems of contemporary life. Her notable book on War of Liberation is Ami Birangana Balchhi. Jahanara Imam (1929-1994) wrote her diary Ekattarer Dinguli (1986) based on liberation war. Her other novels include Anya Jiban (1985), Jiban Mrtyu (1988), Buker Bhitare Agun (1990), Nataker Abasan (1990), Dui Meru (1990). The novels of Selina Hossain mainly deal with liberation war, 1952 language movement and the events that occurred before the partition of India in 1947. Her noted novels are Hangar Nadi Grenade (1976), Japita Jiban (1981), Nirantar Ghantadhwani (1984). In addition, her novels Pokamakarer Gharbasati (1986), Neel Moyurer Jauban (1983) narrated the life style in Bengali society between 7th and 12th century. Mukti (1992), Nilimay Neel (1992), Hridaye Bangladesh (1993), Russeler Juddha Jatra (1994) are the noted novels of Panna Kaiser. The novels Battolar Upanyas (1959) and Anukalpa (1959) of Razia Khan are based on triangular love and represent the artistic analysis of mental agony, individual feelings and complication of nineteenth century human life. Her novel Hey Maha Jiban represents the transition of depressed conjugal life of the progressive character Amina to abnegation in amorous love. Nasreen Jahan's novels Udukku (1993), Ishwarer Bam Hat (2007), Mrtyusakhigan (2006) describe inner wailing of men,, conflict of life, socio-economic crisis and instability of the third world. Rabeya Khatun's notable novels are Ananta Anvesa (1969), Madhumati (1963), Mon Ek Shveta Kapotee (1965), Baanna Galir Ek Gali (1984). The backdrop of her well known novel Feraree Surya (1974) is the black night of 25 March, 1971. Her novel Neel Nishit (1984) presents the sequence of revulson of feelings consequent upon the depression from unsuccessful love, and her novel E Vadar Maha Vadar (1988) is based on illegal conjugal relation. Mahasweta Devi's works are primarily on the Munda aborigines. Her noted books are Natee (1957), Hajar Chaurashir Ma (1975), Tarunyer Adhikar (1977), Agnigarbha (1978), Kagojer Nauka, Jani Tumi Asbe, Priyer Kanthosar, Lekhoker Swapna, Sonali Sandha, Harano Manik are some of the novels of Romena Afaz. She is popular for her detective novels. Razia Mazid's noted novels are Tamasa Baloy (1966), Diganter Swapna (1967), Meghe Jaltaranga (1985), Naksatrer Patan (1982), Dandaye Achhi Eka (1987). Ar Ek Jiban (1968), Jal Rang Chhabi (1984), Baishakhe Shirna Nadi (1983) Abasanna Gan (1982), Kaler Mandira (1997) are some of the novels of Mokbula Manzoor. Rizia Rahman's novel Ekal Chirakal (1984) depicts the picture of well and woe, expectation and achievement, religious faith and superstition, exploitation and deception, jealousy and selfishness of the Santal life. Her novel Bang Theke Bangla (1987) depicts the life of the Bangalis, neglected and deceived for centuries and inspired by the spirit of Bangali nationalism. Dilara Hashim's novel Ghar Man Janala (1965) portrayed the urban life style. Besides, she wrote Ekada Ebong Ananta (1975), Stabdhater Kane Kane (1977), Amlakir Mau (1978), Anukta Padavalee (1998). Aparpaksa (1992), Shodh (1992), Lajja (1993), Vandini (2008) are some of the novels of Taslima Nasrin.

Nabakahini is a Swarna Kumari Devi is a noted book of short stories; Indira Devi's (1889-1912) Nirmalya (1912), Ketaki (1915) and Phuler Toda; Suruchi Bala Roy's Marmasmrti (1919), Jhara Pata O Ahuti; Sarasi Bala Basu's short story Shreyasee (1921) and Milan; Jotirmayee Devi's (1894-1988) Sona Rupa Noy (BS 1376), Rajghotak (1941), Ababallir Adale (1955), Band Masterer Ma (1961), Ababallir Kahini (1965) are noted book of stories. Sufia Kamal's short story is Keyar Kanta (1937); Razia Mahbub's Khapchhada (1958), Dur Bhashini (1969), Swanirbachita Galpa (1962); Mokbula Manzoor's Sayahna Yuthika, Diba Ratri; Rizia Rahman's Agniswaksar; Iffat Ara's Rodan Bhara Basanta (1989), Nona Swader Jiban (1990), Ekaki Andhakare (1994), Sukh Jakhan Sesh Belai (2000); Selina Hossain's Utsa Theke Nirantar, Khol Karotal, Manusti; Nazma Jesmin Chowdhury's Megh Kete Gele, Anya Nayak, Bari Theke Paliye; Jharna Rahman's Kalthunti, Anya Ek Andhaker, Jibaner Jal O Anal; Nasreen Jahan's Sthabir Yauban (1984), Bichurna Chhaya (1985), Surya-tapasi (1989), Path Hay Path (1989) are some of the noted books.

Jnanadanandini Devi wrote two dramas, Sat Bhai Champa and Thak Duma Dum and were published in 1910 in the journal Balak. Swarna Kumari Devi's noted dramas are Nibedita, Dibya Kamal, musical drama Basanta-Utsab (1801), Bibaha Utsab (1892), poetical drama Yuganta, Kautuknatya O Bibidha Katha, Deva Kautuka and satire Kane Badal, Pakchakra. Amala Devi's drama Bhikharini (1914), Sarjubala Dasgupta's' Trivenee Sangam (1914), Devottar Biswanatya (1915), Annapurna (BS 1322) are worth mentioning, Devottar Biswanatya is an allegorical drama based on the conflict between the lobourer and the upper classes. The picture of contemporary society has been reflected in Nilima Ibrahim's dramas Duye Duye Char, Naba Meghadut, Manoneeta, Je Aranye Alo Nei.

Among the essay writers mention may be made of Roquiah Sakhawat Hossain, Nilima Ibrahim, Begum Samsunnahar Mahmud, Sanjida Khatun, Hosne ara Shahed, Begum Akter Kamal, Siddiqa Mahmuda, Monwara Hossain, Siddiqa Kabir, Selina Hossain, Razia Khan, Razia Mahbub, Razia Sultana, Shahida Akhter, Mahbuba Siddiqi and Nasreen Jahan.

''Song'' Indira Devi Chowdhurani (1873-1960) obtained diploma in music from the Trinity College of Music and received lessons in classical music (vocal) from Badridas Mukul. Subsequently, many of her writings on music were published in magazines like' Bamabodhini, Bangalaksmi, Sadhana, Parichay and Sabujpatra. Her most important contribution is the making of Swaralipi of two hundred Tagore songs including Mayar Khela, Bhanusingher Padavali and Kal Mrigaya. She was a teacher of Rabindra song in Sangeet Bhaban of Santiniketan. Sati Devi (1911-1979) was a famous singer of Tagore song and song of Atulprasad. She taught song at Indian Cultural Centre established by Uday Sankar in Almora. Besides, she was associated with the Pritthi Theatre of Bombay and was the director of musical school 'Surbitan'. In addition, she recorded many songs of Himangshu Datta and of Dwijendralal Roy. Firoza Begum is mostly known as a singer of Nazrul song and composer of its musical notation. In 1393 BS, His Masters Voice Company of Kolkata released 11 record of songs of Firoza Begum. For her contribution towards the development of songs and music, she was awarded Swadhinata Padak (1976), National Television Award (1976), Ekushey Padak, and Shilpakala Academy Award (1979). Gita Datta was a playback singer of films. She sung a number of popular songs in films and Gramophone records. Khaleda Manzoor-e Khuda was a regular singer of Dhaka Radio from 1951 to 1955 and sung Tagore song, modern song, folk song and religious songs. At that time as a Rabindra singer she was popularly known as Khaleda Fency Khanam. Sanjida Khatun is a Rabindra singer and Rabindra-researcher. Besides, she was the president of Gana Shilpi Sanstha and a singer of Muktijoddha Sangitshilpi in 1971. Chhaya Ahmed is a song composer of Radio Bangladesh. Ferdausi Rahman is a regular singer of Bangladesh Television since its inception. She sings thumri, gazal, Nazrul geeti, modern song, bhawaiya, bhatiyali and folk' song. She is a play back singer too. She tuned about two hundred songs in film. Anjuman Ara Begum was a singer of Radio-television and cinema since 1969. She studied the art of music at Hawaii University in 1965 under a scholarship. She was awarded Tarakalok medal 95. Kalyani Ghosh is a famous singer of radio, television and cinema. During the War of Liberation in 1971, she as a member of the Bangladesh Tarun Shilpi Goshthi presented songs in different town and refugee camps in India in favour of the war. Moreover, she worked with Calcutta Youth Care, a famous music team of Kolkata. Abha Alam (1947-1976) was a classical singer and teacher. She was a principal of Atiq Sangeet Academy, vice' principal of Senanibas Sangeet Academy and the examiner of classical song of Dhaka University and Dhaka Education Board. In recognition of her significant contribution to music she was awarded Ekushey Padak in 1978. Lily Islam completed a diploma course on Rabindra song and classical song and also got Bachelor and Masters degree in Rabindra songs from Santiniketan. She was a teacher of Jhumur Lalitakala Academy. Nilufar Yasmeen''' '''(1948-2003) regularly contributed classical music, Nazrul songs and songs of Atulprasad, Dwijendralal and Rajanikanta in Bangladesh Television. She was a teacher in the Department of Drama and Song in the Dhaka University. Runa Laila is a prominent singer of international repute. She has numerous playbacks for movies in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan during the late 1960s,1970s and early 1980s. Pakistan television broadcasted a popular series programme as 'Bajme Laila' in honour of Runa Laila. She earned great reputation at home and abroad for her significant role in music. She was awarded the Graduate Niger Film Critic Award in 1968, Swadhinata Award in 1977. Sabina Yasmin is one of the most popular singers of Bangladesh. She has reigned supreme in the realm of Bangladeshi music for the last 40 years. She is one of those few vocalists who is equally sought after in Bangladesh as well as in India. She has recorded more than 10 thousand songs and established her position in the late 1970s and early 1980s with numerous patriotic songs and folk songs. She was awarded the Independence Award, Ekushey Padak and National Film Award. Haimanti Sukla is a famous singer both of Bangladesh and India. She permanently settled in West Bengal after the partition of India. She had numerous long play and disk records. Rezwana Chowdhury Banya is a famous Rabindra singer and now serving as a teacher in Sangeet Department in Dhaka University. Mita Haq is a noted artist of Rabindra sangeet and now serving in the musical department of Chhayanaut, a cultural organization set up in 1961. Other Rabindra singers of this institution include Laisa Ahmed Lisa, Elora Ahmed Sukla, Nilufar Jahan. Shahin Samad, one of the most popular singers of Nazrul song, has now been serving in Chhayanaut. Other noted singers of Chhayanaut include Nasima Shahin Fancy, Sharmin Sathi Islam, Masuda Nargis, Nabanita Chakrabarty, Roksana Hossain Munni, Farhana Akter Sharley, Afroza Khan Mita and Anindita Chowdhury. Besides,' Ferdaus Ara, Shahnaz Rahmatulla, Shabnam Mushtari, Fauzia Yasmin, Fatematuzzohra, Dilruba Khan, Shammi Akhter, Momtaz Begum, Kanak Chanpa, Samina Chowdhury, Fahmida Nabi, Farida Yasmin, Abida Sultana, Sumana Haq, Doli Sayantani' are noted artistes in different arena of the musical world.

Acting Sultana Zaman (1935-2012) is the first Bangali and Muslim actress who acted in numerous films both in Bangla and Urdu such as Matir Pahar (1959), Sonar Kajal (1962), Chanda (1962), Zoar Alo (1962), Satrang (1965), Mala (1965), Uzala (1966),' Abar Banabase (1966), Rupban (1966), Mayurpankhi (1968), Natun Diganta (1968), Maner Mato Bau (1969), Trisna (1978) and was awarded the Chitrakash Award, National Film Award (2009). Anwara is one of the most popular actresses in film industry, acted in more than fifty films. Her notable films are Nayan Moni, Golapi Ekhan Traine, Nawab Sirajuddaula.''' '''She was awarded National Film Award, Bangladesh Journalist Society Award etc. Atia Chowdhury acted in the main character of Nawab Sirajuddaula (1967), 'Arun Barun Kiranmala (1968), Sat Bhai Champa (1968). Kabari Sarwar acted in Lalan Fakir, Sujan Sakhi and Sareng Bau; She was awarded National Film Award and bachsas Award. Champa acted in drama Shahjadir Kalo Nekab, film Tin Kanya, Bheja Chokh, Padma-Meghna-Jamuna, Padma Nadir Majhi, Moner Manush. Doli Ibrahim (1948-1991) was the best actress of the film Surya Dighal Badi. Natun acted in Pran Sajani, Rajlaksmi Srikanta, Ora Egaro Jan, Pagla Raja, Maheshkhalir Banke, Fakir Majnu Shah and was awarded BACHSAS Award in 1983 for her performance in the film Pran Sajani. Babita was awarded National Film Award in 1985 for her performance in Ramer Sumati, Basundhara Award in 1977 as best actress and BACHSAS Award in 1985 for her performance in Dahan film. Rawshan Jamil (1931-2002) acted in Ali Baba, Jiban Theka Neya, Maner Mato Bau, Titas Ekti Nadir Nam, Golapi Ekhon Trane, Ebar Tora Manush Ha, Ora Egaro Jan etc. Rozina acted in a lot of films and was awarded BACHSAS Award in 1984 and in 1985 as the best actress. In addition, she was honoured by Indian Kalpa Mandir in 1986 and from Pakistan in 1987. Shamim Akhter Rozi was awarded Razu Ahmed Gold Medal in 1974, National Film Award, Sequence Award in 1975, BACHSAS Award in 1977, Chitrali O Bangabandhu Award in 1389 BS in recognition of her contribution to film industry. Sabana was awarded National Film Award for the films Sakhi Tumi kar (1980), Dui Paiser Alta (1982), Nazma (1983), Bhat De (1984), Apeksa (1987) and was awarded BACHSAS Award twice for her performance in Lal Kajal in 1987 and Rajlaksmi Srikanta in 1987. Suchitra Sen came to the lime light for her acting in the film Pathe Halo Deri, released in 1957. In 1961 she acted in the central character in the film Saptapadi which was adorned as best film by Bengal Film Journalist Association. She was awarded as the best actress in the International Film Festival for her performance in the film Sat Panke Bandha,' released in 1963.'

Tripti Mitra, the pioneer of drama movement in the 1940s, came to the lime light for her extraordinary performance as actress in the drama Nabanna of Indian Gananatya Sangha. As one of the leaders of the Bahurupi Natya-gosthi, Tripti Mitra contributed to the excellence of the art of drama for more than four decades. Dilara Jaman was an eminent drama actress of Television and vice president of Radio and Television Shilpi Sangsad. Ferdausi Majumder is a popular drama artist of radio and television. In 1975 she was awarded National Television Award for the first time as the best actress and Sequence Award of Merit in the same year. In addition, she was awarded Shilpa Kala Academy Award (1977), Kazi Mahbubullah Gold Medal (1981), Bangladesh Medal (1985), Manik Mia Memorial Medal (1987) and Bangabandhu Award. Lucky Inam, a member of the Nagarik Natya Dal acted in more than one hundred dramas and was awarded Sequence Award in 1984. Subarna Mustafa is a prominent drama artist both in stage and in television. Her first stage theatre is Jandis O Bibidha Beloon and television drama Baraf Gala Nadi. Others noteworthy artists of this genre are Shabnam, Sharmili Ahmed, Banani Chowdhury, Doly Jahur, Ayesha Akter, Laila Hasan, Jahanara Ahmed, Keya Chowdhury, Tamalika Karmaker, Rokeya Prachi, Trapa Majumder, Shami Kaiser, Afsana Mimi, Bipasha Hayat.

''Sculpture'' Novera Ahmed (1930-1989) was the first noted artist of sculpture in Bangladesh. She assisted Hamidur Rahman in drawing the design of' the central Shaheed Minar. In October in 1958 when Marshal Law was promulgated in the country, the work of the construction of the central Shaheed Minar came to a stand still, and' Novera Ahmed restarted the work at her own accord. In 1961 her bust 'Child Philosopher' got the best sculpture award at the All Pakistan Painting and Sculpture Exhibition. Most of her sculptures were made of bronze. In her sculptures she made a synthesis between the' European concept and the' indigenous subject and technic. Notable among Shamim Shikder's sculptures are Swaparjita Swadhinata (TSC, Dhaka University), La-gayenika (In front of Foreign Ministry), sculpture at state guest house 'Padma', sculpture in front of Prime Minister's residence, Police Club, and in Comilla cantonment. Besides, she made the bust of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Siraj Sikder. In addition she made calligraphy art in front of secretariat of Prime minister, Third Gate of Dhaka Cantonment, Hazrat Shahjalal Biman Bandar, and Foreign Service Academy, Sugandha.

''Painting'' In 1920 Meher Banu sent two of her paintings to the monthly Moslem Bharat in Kolkata. Kazi Nazrul Islam was inspired by one of the paintings and wrote the poem Kheyaparer Tarani after it. Meher' Banu's painting were published in the Shravan 1327 BS (July-August 1920) issue of the Moslem Bharat. This was the first painting by a Bengali Muslim woman to be published. In a yearly exhibition of Dhaka Charu O Karukala Maha- Vidyalay Meharun got Category Award in 1978 and Best Award in 1980 for her oil painting. Besides, her photography 'Concern' was published in Bangladesh Memorandum (1972-1982). Farida Zaman emerged as an artist with original characteristics at the end of the seventies. She selected river, fish and fishing nets as her subject matter which are very familiar in Bangali life. She created her painting by mainly adopting the composition of waves, scribbles, texture fine or thick lines, slight interplay of light and shade that is within the structure of the net. She divides the pictorial through horizontal and vertical curved lines and shapes through which the composition of the fishing net is expressed. Even she uses oil paint, applies the colour like a light wash, which is mingled with layers of light and shade. Recently Farida zaman's art work projects a few different subjects. Nasreen Begum chose water colour as her key medium. Though at first she created painting in water colour in the conventional oriental style, later her work began to display her distinctive style. Through an open door in the middle of the canvas the world on the opposite is seen through this form. She represents the post-marriage tragedy of ruined dreams as against the pre-marriage hopes and desires of a woman life. Through her selection of meaningful symbols and measured application of colours, the dualistic life of woman is manifested. Rokeya began as a printmaker, but later she is known as an artist inclined to experiment in various media of painting. The world of woman was the subject to her interest at the beginning, especially the mother and child (Myedona) which may be a reflection of her individual feelings. Gradually her interest went beyond the limits of the world of woman, and began to spread into the wonder of the universe and of the existence of man and woman. Rokeya wished to capture the form of universal nature in abstract composition by using exceptional media such as tempera and by capitalising on the somewhat suddenly created surface of the canvas. Nazlee Laila instead of representing the form of injustice towards woman through a few familiar symbols of protest, which the woman artist generally do, has chosen a manner of expression completely distinct. Though her style is representative, she gives a multi-angular dimension to her paintings by varying realistic perspective and by freedom in the selection of colours. Niloofar Chakma, one of the youngest artists of the 1980s, had her compositions strongly distinctive. At the beginning she used her skill of creating realistic figures, bringing simplicity to figures, two dimensionality and geometric composition to the picture plane. Her paintings are virtually monochromatic. Later she brought further changes to her style and also brought the shapes down to composition as well. Atia Islam Anne sometimes represents, with horrific reality, the position of a woman in a male dominated society, woman who faces outrageous brutality of man driven by carnal passions and woman who is chained by the same society. Her paintings are a direct expression of a society. Kanak Chanpa is most probably the first notable artist who created the mainstream art. The interest, conflicts and sorrows within the inner being of tribal people were somewhat manifested for the first time in Kanak Chanpa's paintings. The conventional method of paintings and the romanticism of sensitivity have influenced her artworks as well. Sometime the hilly atmosphere and many things linked with the people of that region is being manifested in Kanak Chanpa's paintings with a different connotation. Tayeba Begum Lipi emerged as an artist mindful of the entity of woman. Gradually she moved towards mixed and installation art. She represents the condition of the secluded woman in purdah in our society. She expands the boundaries of her contemplation and uses suggestive metaphors indicating the overall inconsistencies of society. Sulekha Choudhury's paintings express that position in almost straightforward language. Her paintings primarily depict of sufferings and loneliness of woman in domestic life rather than in society.

''Photography'' Sayeeda Khanum is the pioneer among the women photographers of the country. In 1961 she started photo journalism through the weekly journal Begum. Later, she got many awards and recognitions at home and abroad including first prize in the All Pakistan Photo Contest of 1960. Dolly Ibrahim got United Nations Organisation Award in photo contest. At the beginning Shirin Sultana was a amateur photographer, but later she took photography as a profession and worked as photo journalist for weekly Begum and Sachitra Sandhani. In 1986,' Munira Murshed Munni completed Basic Photography Course from Dhaka University Photography Academy and honours course from Pathshala in 1998-2000. From 1996 she took photography as profession. The contemporary photographers are Farjana Khan Godhuli (AFP), Momena Jalil (New Age), Kakoli Pradhan (Samakal), Laila Anwar Bindu (BD News), Snigdha Jaman, Juthika Hawladar, Sanjida Shaheed, Samara Haq etc. On 8 March 2005, on the occasion of International Women's Day, the senior and junior photographers of the country held a group exhibition as a program of Biksubdha Nari Morcha under the banner 'Jvale Uthi Sahasi Nari'.

''Dance'' Before the partition of Bengal, Amalasankar Nandi and Menaka Chowdhury were the most notable dancers. Amalasankar was popular for dance theatre and Menka for chhayanatya, and subsequently Maleka Pervin Banu and Lulu Bilkis. In 1948 Gauhar Jamil founded a dance institute named Shilpakala Bhaban. At that time a number of Dance Dramas, such as Shakuntala, Meghadut, Sonar Nupur were staged in which educated young women including Laila Samad, Rokeya Kabir, Rawshan Jamil, Jaharat Ara, Muminunnessa, Kulsum Huda, Naima Ahmed, Lily Khan, Rozy Majid, Momtaz, Meher Ahmed, Zeenat Ahmed, Selina Bahar Zaman took part. From Jago Art Centre, Nikkan Lalita Kala Kendra and Music College, several dancers completed their degree cource on dance namely Rahija Khanam Jhanu, Dalia Nilufer,, Mandira Nandi, Nargis Murseda, Alpana Momtaz, Lily Khan, Minu Haq, Dolly Iqbal, Selina Muhsin, Zinat Barkatullah, Lubna Marium, Sarmila Bandopadhyay, Dipa Khandaker, Selina Hossain, Mili Kazi, Sharmin Hasan and Laila Hasan. Lubna Mariam, a dancer of Bharatnatyam, completed a training course (1960 to 1972) from Bulbul Lalitakala Academy. Besides, she was instructed by Ustad Prahlad Das on Bharatnatyam. Anwara Bahar Chowdhury (1919-1987), one of the founders of Bulbul Lalitakala Academy, established a music and dance institute named Surbitan in 1941. Folk and modern dance artists are Rawshan Jamil, Jinat Barkatullah, Laila Hasan, Alpana Mumtaz. Prominent dance artistes of Bharatnatyam of' 1980s include Sukla Sarker, Sharmila Bandopadhyay, Soma Momtaz, Tamanna Rahman, Munmun Ahmed, Tabassum Ahmed, Baby Rozario, Prama Abanti, Benarjee Salam Sumi, Subhra Sengupta, Munni, Arna Kamalika, Lily Islam; Manipuri dancers include Sharmila Bandyopadhyay, Lily Islam, Tamanna Rahman; Kathak dancer Munmun Ahmed and Odissi dancer Minu Haq. Some of the dance institutes are Udayan-Mamatasankar Dance Academy directed by prominent dancer Mamata Sankar, daughter of Amlasankar Nandi, Nritya Nandan directed by Sarmila Bandyopadhyay, Nrityanchal directed by Shamim Ara Nipa, Dhrupad directed by Sukla Sarker, Natraj by Laila Hasan, Rewaj Performing Acadeny by Munmun Ahmed, Kathakali at the beginning by Alpana Mumtaz and later her daughter Soma Mumtaz, Divya by Dipa Khandaker. [Shamima Akhter]

'''Bibliography''' Jogendranath Gupta, Banger Mahila Kavi, Kolkata, 1953; Brajendranath Bandyopadhyay, Bangiya Sahitye Naree, Kolkata, 1950; Srikumar Bandyopadhyay, Bangiya Sahitye Upanyaser Dhara, Kolkata, 1372; Sukumar Sen, Bangala Sahityer Itihas, Vol-5, Kolkata, 1958; Bangiya-Sahitya-Parisat, Sahitya-Sadhak-Charitamala, Kolkata, 1946; Farida Sultana, Bangladesher Upanyase Jiban Chetana, Dhaka, 1999.

''''Women's Movement''''' an action directed towards ensuring trust in women's rights and equal status of man and woman, as well as ensuring women's right in family, society and state. The objective and programmes of women's movement differ in different situation. In the Indian subcontinent especially in undivided Bengal, the women's movement was initiated and carried out as part of reformist movement and modernisation. The progressive leaders of social reforms movement like [[Raja Rammohun Roy|raja rammohun roy]] (1774-1833), [[Vidyasagar, Ishwar Chandra|ishwar chandra idyasagar]] (1820-1891), British scholar d' rozario, leaders of Brahma Samaj and other noted personalities initiated an extensive movement in order to protect the women from social and religious oppression. During the period they developed a revolutionary environment and created a positive impression in the mind of the people on the equality of men and women. The women's movement although initiated by the male folk, included also the women at a later stage. Women's status had undergone a change at the end of the twentieth century and that was made possible under the influence of greater movement of the women.

Women's Movement in undivided India: Era of emancipation and self consciousness:' Women's movement was initiated in the nineteenth century by Raja Rammohun Roy as a part of social reforms and through the propagation and activities to abolish the practice of Sati. In 1815 Rammohun Roy established the Atmiya Sabha for curbing, along with others, social and religious oppression towards women. In 1928, Rammohun Roy with cooperation of the progressive Brahmas, established Brahma Sabha in order to stop the practice of Satidaha. He wrote some books on Satidaha such as Sahamaran Bishaye Prabartak ebong Nibartaker Sangbad: Prothom Prostab (1818) ebong Dvitiya Prostab (1819) ebong Sahamaran (1829). In the backdrop of continuous movement the practice of Sati was somehow relaxed during 1815-1817. On 4 December 1829 Lord William Bentinck codified the Satidaha Prohibition Act. Rammohun Roy protested against caste discrimination, polygamy and child marriage. According to him, oppression on women was the outcome of prevailing social, cultural and religious practices. He emphasised and urged upon the Bengal women to accept the good aspects of western culture which was compatible with their own culture.

With the abolition of the practice of Sati the reformers of colonial Bengal gave priority to the execution of remarriage of widows. Although women got rid of religious oppression with the enactment of law on Satidaha, the problem became acute as the number of widows was gradually on the increase. Due to practice of polygamy by the elderly kulin Brahmans and the ban on remarriage of the widows led the widows to follow strict code of life. The strict restriction on day to day life, provision for limited and controlled food, heavy household duties, restriction on exposure of one's beauty before the male folk, and such other preventive measures sometimes led the widows to escape from home and indulge in prostitution. Although widow marriage was not prohibited in the Muslim society, the socio-cultural practice discouraged the remarriage of the women in aristocratic families.

The widow marriage was first supported by the members of the [[Young Bengal|young bengal]]. Opinions in favour of remarriage of widows were published in the newspaper Jnananveshan in 1833-1834 and later in Bengal Spectator. Ishwar Chandra Bidyasagar played a vital role on this issue. He tried to augment public awareness on this issue through the newspaper Sambad Provakar. In his book titled Bidhoba Bibaha Uchit Kina Etodbishayak Prostab (1855) (A discourse on the question whether widow marriage is permissible or not), he highlighted the correct interpretation of scripture in support of widow marriage. On 4 October 1855 he submitted a memorandum to the Legislative Assembly. His movement made so much impact on the society that the Widow Remarriage Act was passed in the Assembly on 19 July 1856. At the early stage after the enactment of the law, the remarriage of widow took place sporadically among the progressive members of the Brahmas. Statistics show that between 1856 and 1911 only 500 widow marriages took place among the high caste Hindu women. Majority of the women remained beyond this legal coverage. Inspite of the codification of Widow Remarriage Act, the cruelty of the society towards the widows became a matter of concern in the Hindu society. However, new step towards social reformation gave rise to many controversies.

Dissention between the conservative and reformer groups revived when with the enactment of Age of Consent Bill in 1891 child marriage was brought into control by prohibiting intercourse with girls below twelve years of age. Contemporary newspapers turned more and more critical of unwarranted interference on religious and cultural values through this bill. At the same time reformation and development in the women society became a sensitive issue beyond question in the nineteenth century.

A major part of women's movement covered the question of emancipation of women from religious and cultural oppression. But the principal stride of women's movement was the movement for education which ushered into being the new awakening of women. In the nineteenth century the movement for education of the Bangali women started through the efforts of Christian missionaries. In 1818, London Missionary Society established the first school for girls at Chinsura (Hooghly). There was no ample opportunity for female education before the drawing up of the Wood's Despatch. With the objectives of the expansion of female education Female Juvenile Society was established under the leadership of Miss Marie Anne Cook, and with the initiative of this society thirty schools were established for girls between 1826 and 1836. In these schools majority of the girls came from poor families since at the beginning of the nineteenth century not much opportunity for female education was open for the upper class for fear of decadence of religious values. Pyari Charan Sarkar established the first school at Barasat in 1847 for girls from upper class Bangali families. Moreover in 1849 John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune established Bethune School (later Bethune College) for girls from all stratas of the society. This initiative was a way to influence the guardians belonging to upper class in providing formal education to the girls.

After the [[Atmiya Sabha, The|atmiya sabha]] of Rammohun Roy, the role of [[Brahma Samaj|brahma samaj]] (1828) established by him was significant in social reformation. The members of Brahma Samaj took steps for promotion of female education, widow marriage outside caste, abolition of the practice of confining women within four walls, limited participation of women in social and public life for improvement of their status in the society. Brahma Samaj was established in East Bengal (Dhaka) in 1846 and later in different parts of Bengal which played a role in spreading female education and in creating positive image of women. At the end of the nineteenth century the question of advancement of women assumed importance in various parts of Bengal. The organisations like Antahpur Stree Shiksha (1870), Hitokari Sabha (1872), Brahmika Sava (1877), Musalman Suhrid Sammilani (1882), Kanyapan Nibarani Sabha (1889) etc worked for widow marriage, bringing an end to the system of selling daughter, prohibition of dowry and advancement of female education in East Bengal. It is notable that at the end of the nineteenth century women themselves became involved in the movement for their emancipation on their own initiative. [[Devi, Swarna Kumari|swarna kumari devi]] established Sakhi Samity in 1896 for promoting female education and providing for self employment of women. This organisation was amalgamated with Bidhaba Shilpasram of Hiranmoyi Ghoshal in 1906 and started functioning as a hermitage and vocational training institute.

In Bengal, a solid foundation of female participation in women's movement was laid by the initiative of Begum [[Hossain, Roquiah Sakhawat|roquiah sakhawat hossain]]. She created an important background of women's movement both theoretically and practically. She established Sakhawat Hossain Memorial Girls School in 1911. Roquiah Sakhawat played a vital role in changing inferior condition of women and in their over all advancement. The major movement launched by Roquiah was aimed at creating opportunity for female education as well as against the practice of seclusion by keeping the women confined within the four walls. Lady Abola Basu from East Bengal formed Nari Shiksha Samity for the promotion of female education and at the end of nineteenth century, women from both wings of Bengal had access to higher education. The establishment of [[Bethune College|bethune college]] (1849), [[Lady Brabourne College|lady brabourne college]] and [[Eden Mohila College|eden college]] (Dhaka) was a vigorous step towards women's movement. The focal point of women's movement was the expansion of female education, and for this reason schools for women were also established in various places of East Bengal on personal initiative.

Beginning from nineteenth century till the first two decades of twentieth century women's movement were conducted from a non-political platform, and its goal was to bring a change in the social condition of women. But after the movement for education and from the beginning of the second half of twentieth century women themselves started movement for the first time demanding their participation in politics. With this end in view National Council of Women in India (NCWI) was formed in 1925 demanding their right to vote, and in 1926 All India Women Conference (AIWC) was floated with representation of [[Naidu, Sarojini|sarojini naidu]], Kamala Devi Chowdhury and Jahanara Shahnewaz from Bengal. In 1928 branch of the All India Women Conference was opened in Bengal.

On 18 December 1917, a delegation of women from various organisations of the subcontinent submitted a memorandum to the viceroy Montagu Chelmsford demanding their right to vote. But the demand was refused in the Congress meeting in view of the objection raised by Congress members with the lone exception of Annie Besante. In the same year Indian Women Association was formed, and Sarojini Naidu, Kamala Devi Choudhury and Begum Hamida Ali and others associated with the Association started movement giving priority to their demand. In 1918, All India Muslim League and the Indian National Congress supported the demand for women's right to vote. Lady Abala Basu formed the Nari Samaj in East Bengal and enlisted public opinion in support of the demand. Women achieved right to vote in Madras in 1919 and in the whole of India in 1935. The participation of women in political arena consequent upon their right to vote probably imbued the women in their participation in national movement as well as in anti-British movement.

Women Movement in Pakistan period' After the partition of India in 1947 women's movement became more organised. New organizations emerged with the object of achieving women's right. But they were much involved with political movement than with women's movement. With the patronisation of the Muslim League government [[All Pakistan Women Association|all pakistan women association]] (APWA) was formed in 1949. Although this organisation was run as a centre for free intellectual exercise, women at the grassroot level remained outside of its periphery. In 1948, women of East Bengal raised the proposal of making provisions in the Constitution for prevention of polygamy and child marriage and for seeking women's consent in marriage. But the proposal was not accepted. During this period women's movement confronted obstacles from the government in several spheres. On 26 May 1948 Mahila Atma Raksha Samity was formed. But it was banned on the plea of its anti-government activities. Later with the initiative of Begum Sufia Kamal, Hena Das, Leela Nag East Pakistan Mohila Samity was formed. But this organisation got currency more for its anti-government stand than its role in women's movement. The issue of Women's legal right assumed much importance immediately after the emergence of Pakistan. The demand for women's right to work and enhancement of such opportunities was raised at the budget session of the Assembly in 1948. In the backdrop of united demand from the women folk the Sharia Bill 1951 concerning personal law for Muslim women was passed and through it women's right to property was recognised. In 1954 Begum Club was established at the initiative of Mohammad Nasiruddin, the editor of Saogat, with a view to creating opportunity of literary activities for women. Later, through this club and the weekly journal Begum, wide spread activities started to uproot dowry culture, to achieve equal right to property for the women, and to spread female education. In 1955 under the leadership of Begum Jahanara Shahnewaz a united front comprising various organisations was formed to uphold the rights of women in marriage, divorce, guardianship of the offspring etc. In the same year a commission was constituted to frame law on the aforementioned matter and on the basis of the report of the commission Family Law Ordinance 1961 was enacted. Through this enactment polygamy was prohibited, registration of marriage was made compulsory, the age for marriage was fixed, the right of women regarding mahr or dower etc was recognised. Yet there remained a gap between enactment and implementation of the law, and later the opposition group termed it as anti Islamic and demanded for its reformation. But due to continuous movement of the women this law was passed in the National Assembly in 1963 without any amendment or change. This enactment was the outcome of women's movement.

In the later years, participation in the movement for annulment of National Education Commission Report, 1962, mass upsurge and freedom struggle turned to be the principal issues. In general, women's movement during Pakistan period did not take place directly on its own, rather was largely amalgamated with the national movement for emancipation. Hence the matters concerning women's right assumed very little importance.

Women's movement in Bangladesh' After the liberation of Bangladesh Women's movement instead of becoming collective endeavour assumed organisational character. Various Women's organisations came into being and they determined their strategies and methods of work in view of the prevailing situation. Initially the organisations emphasised on the rehabilitation of the women violated and tortured during the war and determining their position in the society. In the perspective of mass upsurge of 1969 the East Pakistan branch of All Pakistan Women Association (APWA) started its journey afresh with the new name of Pakistan Mahila Parishad by the initiative of Begum Sufia Kamal. Later Pakistan Mahila Parishad was renamed as [[Bangladesh Mahila Parishad|bangladesh mahila parishad]]. The first and foremost agenda of Mahila Parishad was to augment the participation of women in politics. In 1972 Mahila Parishad demanded for fixation of reserved seats for women in the Jatiya Sangsad and local government, and direct election for those reserved seats. Besides, it made a drive for increased opportunity of female education, fertility health, constitutional and legal right and prohibition of violence against women.

Towards the end of the 1970s Mahila Parishad submitted a memorandum to the government with demand for preventing oppression on women on account of dowry. In 1980, Dowry Prohibition Act was passed. In the early 1980s Mahila Parishad put pressure upon the government for approval of the CDO Charter, an international document on Women's rights, and tried to co-ordinate its efforts with the government for proper implementation of its objectives. In 1980, the Parishad demanded framing of uniform family code or universal family law for the women belonging to all religions. The argument was that inspite of differences in religion all women are essentially on the same footing in terms of suffering of oppression. Females are inferior to male in respect of power structure prevailing above religion, caste and creed as well as the political and economic perspectives.

In the 1980s Nari Paksha was formed which by establishing network in different districts of the country directed its activities for augmenting awareness to violence to women, to get guardianship of children, to achieve right to property and to curb family oppression upon women. In most of the cases these women organisations have been rendering legal support to the victims. In 1987, [[Oikyabaddha Nari Samaj|oikyabaddha nari samaj]] was formed with the object of ensuring right of women. By holding a conference on 10 February 1988 this combined alliance highlighted their seventeen point charter of demand. The salient features of this seventeen point demand consisted of equal participation of men and women in national activities, implementation of dowry prohibition law, prevention of violence and traficking of women, formation of family court, ensuring political rights, stopping harassment to women in the work place, protection of rights of aborigin women, right of inheritance and increasing quota for women in the Jatiya Sangsad etc.

Women's movement in Bangladesh is mostly perspective based. It is directed on the basis of problems of women. In the 1990s the main theme of discussion of women organisations was the proper recognition to the female freedom fighters. In December 1990, UBINIG (Research for Determination of Principle of Development Alternative) organised the first gathering of female freedom fighters, and in 1995 [[Sammilita Nari Samaj|sammilita nari samaj]] was formed to prevent violence against women and specially to stop the exercise of fatwa. But the prime protest of the Sammilita Nari Samaj was against violence by the state, paternal influence and against the exploitation of female and child labour. After the World Women Conference in Beijing in 1995 the government of all countries were urged upon to take step for women's development. Consequent upon the Beijing conference and the movement by different women organisations, the Nari-O-Shishu Nirjatan Daman Ain 2000 was enacted.

Women's movement in Bangladesh found its genesis chiefly from the efforts made by the progressive reformers in undivided India. In the nineteenth century strong movement started for the social emancipation and advancement of women as a continuous process of national feeling and awakening of Bengal. The necessity of women's movement in the nineteenth century was virtually for achieving social emancipation and self-development of women. In the present perspective although the position of women is much stronger than before, the nature of violence and discrimination against women have taken newer shape in the newly emerging situation. Hence women's movement is imperative for safeguarding the existence of women. Women's movement therefore is essentially a continuous process. [Lilyma Ahmed]

[[bn:নারী]]

Wise, James

2021-06-17T19:40:40Z

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'''Wise, James''' civil surgeon of Dhaka in the 1860s and a writer. He had eagerness not only for medical science but also history. He sent a considerable number of impressions of stone inscriptions for Blockmann's Contributions to the Geography and History of Bengal. When [[Cunningham, Sir Alexander|alexander cunningham]] came to [[Sonargaon|sonargaon]] and [[Vikramapura|vikramapura]], he not only arranged boats and elephants for him, but also accompanied him in that visit. The erudition and companionship of Wise made the visit of Cunningham fruitful.

During the nineteenth century, three Wises were known in Dhaka town: one was the Principal of Dhaka College, one a civil surgeon and the other an indigo-planter. Wise, the indigo-planter, had a vast [[Zamindari Association, The|zamindari]] in East Bengal. The 'Wiseghat' on the bank of the river Buriganga was named after him. Civil surgeon James Wise lived in the same house at Sadarghat where previously indigo-planter James Wise had lived. Often people confuse civil surgeon Wise with the indigo-planter Wise. The full name of Dr Wise was James Fawns Norton Wise. In the books and articles written by him, he used only the first and last portions of his name. About a hundred years later the Bulbul Academy of Fine Arts started functioning in the house where once the two Wises lived.

The book written by him was entitled Notes on Races, Castes and Trades of Eastern Bengal. Dr Wise collected the material used in writing the book during his stay in Dhaka. Later on, in his retired life, he got the manuscript printed in 1883 from 'Her Majestry's printer Harrison and Sons' located in St Martin Lane in London. In the title page was printed 'not published'. So the book is very rare. Recently, the Bangla translation of the book has been published with the title Purbabanger Bibhinna Jati, Varna O Peshar Bibaran. Apart from this, two articles entitled 'Notes on Sonargaon' and 'Notes on [[Bara-Bhuiyans, The|bara bhuiyans]]' had been published in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1874.

The book is divided into five parts, viz, 'Muhamedan', 'Religious Sects of the Hindus', 'Hindu Castes and Aboriginal Races', 'Armenians' and 'Portuguese in Eastern Bengal'. He used the term 'race' to denote religious community. By the term 'caste' he made one understand the 'Varna' system of the Hindu community. Wise also mentioned about the discrimination between the Ashraf and Atraf within the Muslim community. He discussed about the Hindu religious sects Shaiva and Vaisnava. He upheld the importance of the aboriginals in the formation of the Bengali nation. The profound impact of the non-Aryan impression on the religious belief of the common people did not pass over his attention. The influence of rural deity, soil and water goddess, forest god, etc, on the Hindu religion of Bengal became manifest in his writings. Wise mentioned that there were eleven sections of the Vaisnavas in Bengal. Of these sections, many are now extinct. Therefore, the importance of the survey of Wise in this respect is beyond comprehension. He narrated the popularity of Trinath worship and Trinath fair amongst the lower caste Hindus. The fact that the authority of the Brahmins on the lower caste people was diminishing also attracted his attention. How the [[Armenians, The|armenians]] and the [[Portuguese, The|portuguese]] came to Bengal and their lifestyle here had equally been discussed briefly in his book.

Wise's book had been printed more than a century ago. The anthropological study that had started at that time has progressed a long way by now; many concepts and definitions have changed. As a result, a present-day sociologist, anthropologist or historian may find many limitations in the writings of Wise. In spite of that, it is hardly possible to underestimate the value of this book. Wise's writings had, no doubt, made an impact on the contemporary scholars. Besides, the same has also influenced many subsequent anthropologists, sociologists or historians. Wise may be considered the pioneer in the study of Anthropology in Bangladesh. The description provided by him regarding the occupations of the people of East Bengal is highly meaningful. From his account important outlines for the writing of social history of Bengal may be derived. [Muntassir Mamoon]

[[Category:Biography]]

[[bn:ওয়াইজ, জেমস]]

Wildlife article

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Bangladesh has lost more than a dozen of wild fauna during the last century. Of them the following could be mentioned: One horned-Rhinoceros, Rhinoceros unicornis; Javan Rhinoceros, R. sondaicus; Asiatic two-horned Rhinoceros, Didermoceros sumatrensis; Gaur, Bos gaurus; Banteng, B. banteng; Wild buffalo, Bubalus bubalis; Nilgai, Boselaphus tragocamelus; Swamp deer, Cervus duvaucelli; Wolf, Canis lupus; Pink-headed duck, Rhodonessa caryophyllacea; Common peafowl, Pavo cristatus; and Marsh crocodile, Crocodylus palustris (Redbook of Threatened Animals: IUCN-Bangladesh, 2000).

Wildlife

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'''Wildlife''' any vertebrate animal other than human being, domesticated animals and fishes, living in its natural habitat. Members of Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves, and Mammalia, their eggs or youngs are included in wildlife. Wild animals can live independently without the help or care of man. Not necessarily a wild animal has to live in forests or jungles; a wall lizard, a sparrow, a pigeon, a myna or a crow are all members of wild [[Fauna|fauna]].

In an area of about 1,47,570 sq km, Bangladesh has about 34 species of amphibians, 109 species of reptiles, 301 species of resident birds, 176 species of migratory birds, 143 species of ragrant birds, 30 species of birds went extirpated, 120 species of inland mammals, and 3 species of marine mammals.

This is undoubtedly extraordinary situation that such a great diversity still exists in an unusually overpopulated (140 million, with more than 1000 people per sq km) country with a very limited range of habitats.

<gallery>

Image:FaunaElephant.jpg|Asian elephant

Image:DeerSambar.jpg|Deer (Sambar)

Image:WildCow.jpg|Wild cow

Image:SerowMainland.jpg|Mainland serow

Image:BearBinturong.jpg|Bear (Binturong)

Image:Civet.jpg|Civet

Image:BiodiversityMangoose.jpg|Mangoose

Image:OtterCommon.jpg|Common otter

Image:CatLeopard.jpg|Leopard cat

Image:LorisSlender.jpg|Slow loris

Image:PeafowlCommonFemale.jpg|Common peafowl (female)

Image:LizardCommonSkink.jpg|Common lizard

Image:BiodiversityReptile.jpg|Turtle Crocodile

Image:Crocodile.jpg|Crocodile

Image:Bullfrog.jpg|Green frog
</gallery>

Bangladesh has lost more than a dozen of wild fauna during the last century. Of them the following could be mentioned: One horned-Rhinoceros, Rhinoceros unicornis; Javan Rhinoceros, R. sondaicus; Asiatic two-horned Rhinoceros, Didermoceros sumatrensis; Gaur, Bos gaurus; Banteng, B. banteng; Wild buffalo, Bubalus bubalis; Nilgai, Boselaphus tragocamelus; Swamp deer, Cervus duvaucelli; Wolf, Canis lupus; Pink-headed duck, Rhodonessa caryophyllacea; Common peafowl, Pavo cristatus; and Marsh crocodile, Crocodylus palustris (Redbook of Threatened Animals: IUCN-Bangladesh, 2000).

Since most wild animals largely depend upon the growth, extent and distribution of forests, decline of these natural habitats severely and adversely affect most inland and resident vertebrate fauna. In the last three decades, the stock of forest trees has declined in Bangladesh at an alarming rate. It is estimated that the forest cover has been reduced more than 50% since the 1970s. Estimates in 1990 revealed that Bangladesh had less than 0.02 ha of forestland per person - one of the lowest forest to population ratios in the world. Presently less that 8% of the country is under forest cover.

In Bangladesh amphibian fauna are represented by about 34 species of members of the order Anura. The orders Gymnophiona and Caudata have no representatives. For sometimes (1988-1993) the country used to export bullfrog legs (Hoplobatrachus tigerinus), but it is now banned.

The lizards, snakes, tortoises and turtles, crocodiles and gharial comprise the reptilian fauna of Bangladesh. A total of 154 species have been recorded. The marsh crocodile is no longer found in the wild in its natural habitats. The gharial (Gavialis gangeticus), few in number, occurs in a limited range in the river Padma.

[[Image:WildLife.jpg|thumb|400px|right]]
Among the Testudines some including the River Terrapin (Batagur baska), Three-striped Roof Turtle (Kachuga dhongoka), Halud Pahari Kasim (Indotestudo elongata), Pahari Kasim (Asian Giant Tortoise, Manouria emys), and Bostami Kasim (Aspideretes nigricans) are critically endangered. The notable lizard species are the Flying lizard (Draco blanfordi) of the mixed evergreen forests, Monitor lizard (Varanus salvator), Bengal monitor (V. bengalensis), Yellow monitor (V. flavescens), Gecko (Gekko gecko), Garden lizard or Calotes (Calotes rouxii, C. jerdoni, C. versicolor), stripped skink (Mabuya dissimilis), and house lizards (Hemidactylus bowringii, H. brooki, H. flaviviridis, H. frenatus).

Less than half a dozen land snakes are highly poisonous. All sea snakes are known to be poisonous although they seldom bite. Important snakes of the country are Slender worm snake (Typhlops porrectus), Common sand boa (Eryx conica), Rock python (Python molurus), Reticulated python (Python reticulata), Common vine snake (Ahaetulla nasutus), Stripped keelback (Amphiesma stolata), Rat snake (Coluber mucosus, C. nigromarginatus), Common Trinket snake (Elaphe helena), Wolf snake (Lycodon aulicus, L. fasciatus, L. jara), Checkered Keelback (Xenochrophis piscator), Krait (Bungarus caeruleus, B. fasciatus, B. niger, B. lividus), Cobra (Naja kaouthia, N. naja), King cobra (Ophiophagus hannah), Pit vipers (Trimeresurus spp.), and Russell's viper (Vipera russellii).

Bangladesh has about 650 species of avifauna. The Sarus cane, Grus antigone (about 1.7 m tall) is considered as the largest bird of the country, although it is rarely seen in recent times. A few flowerpeckers and sunbirds, only about 7-8 cm in length, are perhaps the smallest. Degradation of forests and consequent ecological alterations obviously affected the composition of the avifauna. Birds associated with forests of some sort or with a swampy habitat have declined. The Pinheaded duck (Rhodonessa carryophyllacea), the Nuka or Comb duck (Sarkidiornis melanotos), the Common peafowl, the Burmese peafowl (P. muticus), Sarus crane, and the Bengal Florican (Eupodotis bengalensis) which were once more or less widely distributed, have now virtually disappeared from Bangladesh.

Most birds that migrate to Bangladesh come from the mountainous northern parts of the subcontinent. Some species come from different parts of Europe and from Siberia. There are certain species that stay in Bangladesh for a short period enroute to their destinations further South or Southeast. There are many species which stay here during autumn or spring.

The country has about 120 species of mammals. They range in size from tiny shrews and pipistrelle bats, which weigh only a few grams and measure a few centimetres, to elephants that stand over 3 metres at shoulder and can weigh over 4 metric tons. The largest mammal, the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) measuring about 30 metres in length and weighing up to 150 metric tons, often enters in Bangladesh waters.

Among the inland mammals, the order Chiroptera ([[Bat|bat]]s) is the largest group. Some notable Chiropterans are Short-nosed fruit bat, False vampire, Indian pigmy pipistrelle, Asiatic lesser yellow bat, and Painted bat. Among the [[Primates|primates]] mention may be made about the Slow loris, Assamese macaque, Rhesus macaque, Hanuman langur, Capped monkey, and Hoolock gibbon. Order Carnivora is represented by 27 species. The notable ones are Jackal, Indian wild dog, Jungle cat, Asiatic golden cat, Clouded leopard, Royal Bengal tiger, Marbled cat, Fishing cat, Common Mongoose, Oriental small-clawed otter, Common otter, Sun bear, Himalayan black bear, and several species of civets. The Asian [[Elephant|elephant]] is now distributed only in the forests of Chittagong and Cox's Bazar areas.

Artiodactyla is represented by one species of wild boar (Sus scrofa), three species of [[Deer|deer]] (Spotted deer/Sambar, Barking deer, and Indian Muntjac), and one species of [[Serow|serow]]. The three species of pangolin (order Pholidota) are-Scaly anteater (Manis crassicaudata), Malayan pangolin (M. javanica), and Chinese pangolin (M. pentadactyla). These are rarely seen and occur in the forests of Sylhet, Chittagong, Chittagong Hill Tracts, Comilla, and Mymensingh.

At least 21 species of Rodentia occur in Bangladesh. Among these some members of Muridae are widely distributed. The notable species are - House rat (Rattus rattus), Bram rat (R. norvegicus), house mouse (Mus musculus), and Bandicoot rat (Bandicota indica). The squirrels are represented by eight species; of these, the Pallas's squirrel, Orange-bellied Himalayan squirrel, Common giant flying squirrel, and Malayan giant squirrel are notable. Only two species of porcupines occur in Bangladesh. These are - Asiatic brush-tailed porcupine (Atherurus macrourus) and Indian porcupine (Hystrix indica). The Hispis hare or Assam rabbit and Rufous-tail hare represent the order Lagomorpha. [SM Humayun Kabir]

'''''Acts, regulations and conventions relating to wildlife''''' The Indian Forest Act, 1927 does not have any provision for wildlife management. It however, includes wild animals and skins, tusks, horns, bones, silk, cocoon, honey, beewax, etc in the definition of forest products.

During the British period there were a number of special acts/rules addressing the need for protecting wild birds and other animals as appropriate or to safeguard a specific species. These include: (a) Act for the Preservation of Wild Elephants, 1879; (b) The Wild Birds and Animals Protection Act, 1912; and (c) The Bengal Rhinoceros Preservation Act, 1932.

Besides these enactments, the Indian Forest Act, 1927 and the 1959 Ordinance provide provision conferring powers to the Government to regulate hunting, shooting and fishing within forests in which these legislations were applicable. Subsequently, the Government framed two separate sets of rules in 1959 to regulate these activities in public and private forests. Both the Rules classify the forests as:

Class A Forests in which all hunting, shooting, trapping or fishing were prohibited to prevent the extinction of any species or to form a sanctuary for game or for other purposes unless it is considered that a species is increasing to an undue extent causing threat to other resources.

Class B Forest in which hunting, shooting, trapping or fishing were permissible only by such persons as are privileged under the rule or under a permit in accordance with these rules.

The above legislations were not of much use in preserving the wildlife. As a consequence the Government of Bangladesh promulgated the Bangladesh Wildlife (Preservations) Order, 1973 as Presidential Order No.23 of 1973, which was enacted as Bangladesh Wildlife (Preservation) Act, 1973. The 1973 Act was amended, elaborated and reenacted as Bangladesh Wildlife (Preservation) (Amendment) Act, 1974. The amendment Act has 48 sections and three schedules. It provides for the constitution of Bangladesh Wildlife Advisory Board, Sanctuaries, National Parks, and Game Reserves; penalties and punishments for offenses; import and export of wild animals; set up of mobile court; duties and responsibilities of government officers; and rules and regulations to be made under this law. It also repealed the three laws of 1879, 1912 and 1932. The schedules provide a list of animals which can be hunted on permit; indicate the animals, trophies and meat, for the possession, transfer and trade of which a certificate of lawful possession is needed, and list the protected animals which shall not be hunted, killed or captured.

The First Schedule includes 3 species of amphibians, 3 [[Reptile|reptile]]s, 27 [[Bird|bird]]s and 3 [[Mammal|mammal]]s. It also includes the crabs. Animals that are listed under this schedule are open to shooting and may be hunted on an ordinary hunting permit. The Part II of the First Schedule specifies a number of reptiles, birds and mammals which need a special permit for hunting, e.g. increase of these animals if threatens the balance of nature of a particular locality or becomes a threat to public life (as in cases of man-eating tiger, rogue elephants, etc). The Second Schedule gives a list of wild animals whose trophies, meat or skin cannot be possessed without a lawful certificate. The Third Schedule includes 18 reptiles, 461 birds, and 67 mammals which are protected and cannot be hunted, killed or captured. Under this schedule the killing of all game animals have been made restricted when they are pregnant, or when in a condition that indicates they are suckling or feeding the young, or when accompanied by their immature offspring. This schedule also restricts the killing of all females as per Part II of the First Schedule except when declared as in case of a man-eating tigress, rogue elephant, etc.

The 1974 Act does not specify its relation with the provisions of 1927 Act and the rules made thereunder. It does not repeal the relevant provisions of the 1927 Act. However, it may be presumed that the 1974 Act as a parent law, has superseded the provisions and rules in or made under the 1927 Act. The 1974 Act is not an all-encompassing legislation. It is not sufficiently comprehensive and does not cover several important aspects. Worse still, the provisions included have not been properly implemented in the absence of adequate staff, facilities and funds. The Act needs an immediate revision.

There are a large number of laws and rules of general nature which have a strong bearing on forest resources and forest administration, and they have their origin much before the formation of Bangladesh. Some of the important ones are: Penal Code, 1860 (Central Act No. XLV of 1860); Cattle Trespass Act, 1871 (Central Act No. I of 1871); Evidence Act, 1871 (Central Act No. I of 1872); Contract Act, 1872; Limitation Act, 1877 (Central Act XV of 1877); Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (Central Act No. 1 of 1894); Criminal Procedure Code, 1898 (Central Act No. V of 1898); Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (Central Act No. V of 1908); Registration Act, 1908; Sale of Goods Act, 1930; and East Bengal Government Land (Recovery and Possession) and Building Act, 1952.

International Conventions, Treaties and Protocols (ICTPs) Bangladesh is a signatory to some international conventions, treaties and protocols which have bearing on forests and forest resources. Some of these have not been ratified, nevertheless, it is obliged to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of the treaty once it has been signed. These are:

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and [[Flora|flora]] (CITES; adopted on 3 March 1973 at Washington DC, USA, entered into force globally on 1 July 1975; Bangladesh signed on 20 November 1981). The purpose is to protect certain threatened species from over-exploitation by means of a system of import and export control.

Bangladesh is a contracting party to the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, especially Waterfowl Habitats (Ramsar Convention), adopted in 1971.

International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Cooperation; adopted on 30 November 1990 in London, UK; Bangladesh signed on the same data. It has not yet entered globally.

International Convention to Combat Desertification; adopted on 17 June 1994 at Paris, France. Bangladesh signed it on 21 June 1994. It has not yet entered globally.

Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, was signed on 3 November 1983. The purpose is to establish an effective system of collective protection of the cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value, organised on a permanent basis and in accordance with modern scientific methods.

International Plant Protection Convention was signed on 1 September 1978. The objective is to maintain and increase international cooperation in controlling pests and diseases of plants and plant products, and in preventing their introduction and spread across national boundaries.

Plant Protection Agreement for the Asia and Pacific Regions signed on 4 December 1974. The aim is to prevent the introduction into and spread within the region of destructive plant diseases and pests.

Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and under Water; adopted on 5 August 1963 at Moscow; globally entered on 10 September 1963. Bangladesh signed it on 13 March 1985.

Bangladesh has signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, New York (adopted on 9 May 1992; globally entered into force in March 1995; Bangladesh signed on 6 June 1992).

Recently Bangladesh has also signed Convention on Biological Diversity, Rio de Janeiro; adopted on 5 June 1992 at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; globally entered into force on 29 December 1993. Bangladesh has also signed the convention at the Earth Summit on 5 June 1992. However, the country needs technical and institutional assistance to satisfy the conventions. [Md Anwarul Islam]

''See also'' [[Bat|bat]]; [[Bird|bird]]; [[Fauna|fauna]]; [[Frog and Toad|frog and toad]]; [[Lizard|lizard]]; [[Mammal| mammal]]; [[Reptile|reptile]]; [[Snake| snake]].

[[Category:Fauna]]

[[bn:বন্যপ্রাণী]]

Wildcat Well

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'''Wildcat Well''' exploratory [[Well|well]] drilled for [[Hydrocarbon|hydrocarbon]] (oil and gas) on a geological feature not yet proven to be productive, or in an unproven territory, or to a zone that has never produced or is not known to be productive in the general area.

In Bangladesh first onshore wildcat well was drilled at Sitakunda anticline, Chittagong district in the year 1914. The well was drilled to a depth of 762 m. The first offshore wildcat well was drilled in the shelf region of the [[Bay of Bengal|bay of bengal]] in 1974-75. This exploration was undertaken by six foreign oil companies who engaged themselves in the bay under production sharing contract with Bangladesh government. So far 53 onshore and 11 offshore wildcat wells have been drilled. These wells are drilled by national companies including OGDC (Oil and Gas Development Company Ltd.), Taila Shandani, [[Petrobangla|petrobangla]], [[BAPEX|BAPEX]], etc. Foreign companies including Shell, BODC (British Oceanographic Data Centre), Union Oil, Ina Napthalin, Occidental, Mobil, Cairn Energy, UNOCAL, etc have also drilled wildcat wells in Bangladesh under production sharing contract. Bangladesh have got one of the highest success ratios in the world in discovering oil and gas from wildcat drillings. The success ratio in Bangladesh is 1 in 3.04 compared to the world ratio of 1 in 10. [Kazi Matin Uddin Ahmed]

''See also'' [[Well|well]].

[[Category:Natural Sciences]]

[[bn:অনিশ্চিত কূপ]]

Wild Flower

2021-06-17T19:40:37Z

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'''Wild Flower''' About 300,000 wild flower plant species have so far been identified, while tens of thousands more remain undescribed. Of them only about 1,500 species (0.5%) are nurtured for food, fodder, fibre, beverage, timber, medicine and flowers. The rest are still wild. The wild plant populations occupy a central position in the earth's environment and the prime source of carbon and breathing oxygen for all living beings.

The territory of Bangladesh primarily comprises the core of Vavilov's Indo-Burma Centre of origin of cultivated plants. The study on plants in this region can be traced to a remote past in the pre-Christian era. The Charak Sanghita composed in about the 5th century BC is a valuable treatise on medicinal plants and their usages.

The systematic floristic study started in the region in the latter part of the 18th century. Some of the prominent pioneers were William [[Roxburgh, William|roxburgh]], Nathaniel Wallich and William Griffith. Sir JD Hooker's monumental work, Flora of British India was published in 7 volumes from 1872 to 1897. Bengal plants by David Prain in two volumes and Flora of Sundribuns were published in 1903. KP Biswas with a co-author published Bharatya Banawshadhi, in six volumes (1973) in Bangla. [[Bangladesh National Herbarium|bangladesh national herbarium]] (BNH) was established in the early seventies and has collected a large number of plant specimens of the country. Survey, collection and preservation of the specimens are continuing.

<gallery>
Image:WildFlower01babla.jpg|Babla

Image:WildFlower02Patibate.jpg|Murta/Pati bate

Image:WildFlower03Chakunda.jpg|Chakunda

Image:WildFlower04Deua.jpg|Deua

Image:WildFlower05Gobura.jpg|Gobura

Image:WildFlower06Nillata.jpg|Nil lata

Image:WildFlower07Jalkalmi.jpg|Jal kalmi

Image:WildFlower08Shola.jpg|Shola

Image:WildFlower09Shola.jpg|Baranukha

Image:WildFlower10Jaldhania.jpg|Jaldhania

Image:WildFlower11Hargoza.jpg|Hargoza

Image:WildFlower12SagarNishinda.jpg|Sagar Nishinda

Image:WildFlower13Ban-san.jpg|Ban-san

Image:WildFlower14Bhola.jpg|Bhola

Image:WildFlower15SagarKalmi.jpg|Sagar Kalmi
</gallery>

Most of the identified (about 5,000 flowering) plants in Bangladesh are wild. About 210 species are being cultivated for food, fodder, fibre, beverage, timber, medicine, and flowers. The wild species grow silently in the vast flood plains, coastal mangrove forests, eastern hills, high plains, and large water bodies of the country. The monsoon rain, warm temperature and high humidity, floodwaters and dry winter chill are the dominant growth environment. A variable environment strongly promotes rapid evolution and may in fact be essential for speeding up evolutionary changes.

Wild flowers, both indigenous and naturalised generally grow in 5 plant communities which commonly include: 1. the flora of flood plains and crop fields; 2. the flora of roadside and homestead shrubberies; 3. the flora of forests and hills; 4. the flora of freshwater marsh; and 5. the flora of coastal strands. There is no clear-cut boundaries of these plant communities. Many species, in fact, are widely adapted and found to grow in more than one of these ecological categories. A brief description of each ecological class is given below:

''''' The flora of floodplains and crop fields''''' This habitat of plant communities constitutes a large area of the country. A vast tract of land is inundated by the monsoon flood for about one to three months every year. There are also upland rice fields within this habitat. The monsoon rains make this land, if not flooded, fairly wet from July to October. During the remaining months of the year there is enough soil moisture for the growth of wild species, particularly the members of Gramineae, Cyperaceae, Amaranthaceae, Araceae, Compositae, Labiatae, Polygonaceae and Scrophulariaceae. Some common flowers of this habitat are Banganda (''Spilanthes iabadicensis''), Bakkan, (''Lippia geminata''), Kulekada (''Hygrophila auriculata''), Choto moragphul (''Gomphrena celosioides''), Dholpata (''Commelina benghalensis''), Jhurjhuri (''Serratula pallida''), Kash (Thatch grass, ''Saccharum spontaneum''), Shialkanta (Prickly popy, ''Argemone mexicana''), etc.

'''''The flora of roadside and homestead shrubberies''''' This habitat comprises the lands which are generally situated above the normal annual flood level. Most of this habitat is located right in the flood plains and upland rice area of the country. The northwest and monsoon rains make the land moist for about 5 months (May to October), while for the rest of the year it is fairly dry. It is not surprising to see that many plant species are found here that are not seen in the flooded lands located only even 200 metres away. Another striking feature is the diversity in the wild species, particularly in shrubs, climbers and undergrowth herbs. Despite considerable human disturbance, a variety of wild plants grow in great numbers in this habitat. Some of the roadside and homestead flowers are Basak (Malabar nut, ''Adhatoda vasica''), Sarpagandha (''Rauwolfia serpentina''), Akand (''Calotropis gigantea''), Bichuti (''Tragia involucrata''), Gobura (''Anisomeles indica''), Chakunda (''Cassia tora''), Babla (Gum tree, ''Acacia nilotica''), Janggli shan (''Crotalaria mucronata''), Pitraj (''Aphanamixis polystachya''), Deuya (Monkey jack, ''Artocarpus lacucha''), Kadam (''Anthocephalus chinensis'') and Bet (''Calamus viminalis'').

'''''Flora of forests and hills''''' The habitat encompasses the open, mixed and protected forests, and the regions of the Chittagong Hill Tracts and tea growing highlands of greater Sylhet. The major plant communities observed here are tall trees, climbers, tall grasses and herbaceous plants. Many of these species are fairly protected from direct human interferences because of their non-commercial value and inaccessibility to their growth areas. Some of them are Nal lata (''Thunbergia gradiflora''), Neemada (''Buddleia asiatica''), Gaichha lata (''Calycopteris floribunda''), Sada kalmi (''Merrmia umbellata''), Ban naranga (''Gelonium multiflorum''), Pahadi kash (''Saccharum arundinaceum''), Letkanta (Caesalpinia crista), Derish korai (Derris robusta), Bankala (Musa ornata) and many species of Orchidaceae and Zingiberaceae. The flowers of forests and hills are Ban naranga (''Gelonium multiflorum''), Uang-gnoen-gai (''Aeschynanthus micrantha''), Kukura (''Leea alata''), Dholsamudra (''Leea macrophylla''), Haldaphul (''Crotolaria anagyroids''), Indian Rhododendron/Straits Rhododendron (''Melastoma malabathricum''), Ramanigi-kela (''Musa ornata''), Kharkhara jam (''Syzygium wallichii''), Ghasphul (''Arundina graminifolia''), Nagabali (''Mussaenda glabrata''), Bandarhulla (''Duabanga grandiflora''), Makrishal (''Schima wallichii''), Shathi (Indian arrowroot, ''Curcuma zeoderia''), and Banada (''Zingiber spectabile'').

'''''Flora of freshwater marsh''''' The country is endowed with vast and widely scattered fresh water bodies. These marshes are the low-lying wetlands where aquatic and water-loving vegetation thrive. These lands have permanent water bodies created by rain and river waters. They include reed marshes, big swamps (beel), ditches, ponds, and canals. These habitats of marshy plants are recently disturbed by irrigation projects, and through the introduction of new activities like fish and duck cultures. Many aquatic species, including the national flower (water lily), are facing extinction from their natural habitat. Most common species are Chotokut (''Sagittaria sagittifolia''), Hijal (India oak, ''Barringtonia acutangula''), Helancha (''Enhydra flactuans''), Chandmala (''Nymphoides indicum''), Shapla (Water lily, ''Nymphaea pubescens''), Patibet (''Clinogyne dichotoneus''), Pani kapar (''Limnophila sessiliflora'') and a few species of water hyacinth and other floating aquatic plants. Freshwater flowers consist of Jal kalmi (Water bindweed, ''Ipomoea aquatica''), Chandmala (''Nymphoides indicum''), Shola (Indian cork-plant, ''Aeschynomene indica''), Shhapla (Blue water lily, ''Nymphaea nouchali''), Bilati Shhapla (Red water lily, ''Nymphaea nouchali''), Kachuripana (Water hyacinth, ''Eichhornia crassipes''), Badanukha (''Monochoria hastata'') and Jaldhaniya (Indian buttercup, ''Ranunculus sceleratus'').

'''''Flora of coastal strand''''' This habitat includes coastal shorelines, tidal flats and the Sundarbans mangrove forest. The coastal strand extends along the coastline in the southern region of the country. The flora of this community is composed mostly of salt-tolerant or salt dependent species. The estuarial floras are notable, they contain more indigenous species than do other regions of the country. Besides the mangrove species, two gregarious palms form conspicuous features, the stemless Nipa palm (Nipa fruticans) in the swamps and riverbanks and the elegant Phoenix paludosa in the drier localities. Shrimp culture and other commercial activities have a negative effect on the flora and fauna of coastal zone. Most common species of this region are Hadgoza (''Acanthus ilicifolius''), Samudur labuni (''Sesuvium portulacastrum''), Pindar (''Crinum asiaticum''), Parash (''Thespesia populnca''), Bhola (''Hisbiscus titiaceus''), Golpata (''Nypa fructicans''), Hetal (''Phoenix paludosa''), Keya (Serew pine, ''Pandanus odoratissimus''), Sagar nishinda (Chaste tree, ''Vitex trifolia'') and many species of mangrove plants. Some of the flowers of coastal strand are Chhagal khuri (''Ipomoea pes-caprae''), Sagar kalmi (''Ipomoea illustris'') and Ban-shan (Wild sunhemp, ''Crotalaria retusa''). [Noazesh Ahmed]

''See also'' [[Flora|flora]]; [[Medicinal Herb|medicinal herb]]; [[Shrub|shrub]].

[[Category:Flora]]

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Whooping Cough

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'''Whooping Cough''' a respiratory illness also known as Pertussis caused by the Gram-negative bacteria Bordetella pertussis. It is a very common childhood illness in Bangladesh as it is in many other countries of the world. The causative organism does not survive for long outside the human host so that the spread of the germ primarily occurs through person to person contact. The route of infection is the nose. An infected individual expels the germ through sneezing and coughing. The airborne bacteria are readily inhaled by healthy individuals in crowded conditions with poor ventilation. The organism, after establishing the infection in trachea and bronchi, continues to multiply rapidly at the site of infection while a fraction dies. The latter disintegrates and releases a toxin from inside the cell which causes severe irritation of the epithelial cells of the trachea and bronchi causing characteristic violent deep coughing that ends in a high-pitched whooping sound, hence the name whooping cough. In severe cases of infection of the respiratory system, the patient may suffer from poor oxygenation of the blood that may lead to convulsion. Because of person to person transmission, sanitation conditions are not thought to significantly contribute to spread of the disease. Its incidence is generally related to crowding and inadequate ventilation. The disease is a public health problem of both the developing and industrialised countries.

Whooping cough is a highly endemic disease in Bangladesh affecting millions of children every year. Explosive epidemics occur particularly in the dry season, that is, during the spring and summer months. Infected persons are to be treated with antibiotics soon after diagnosis. The disease, fortunately, is vaccine-preventable. The vaccine currently in use consists of killed cells of the bacteria which is given as a course of three injections at certain intervals. In Bangladesh, the [[Extended Programme on Immunisation|extended programme ]][[Extended Programme on Immunisation|on immunisation]] (EPI) includes this vaccine in the formulation commonly known as DPT- that is, vaccines against diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus, given together in one injection. After the initiation of EPI in 1986, pertussis vaccine coverage reached in 1996 to nearly 80% of all children in the immunisation age from a figure of merely 2% at the initiation of the EPI programme. The decade of successful childhood immunisation, 1986-1996, is globally acknowledged as a noteworthy achievement of Bangladesh, and is an example which other developing countries of the world are trying to duplicate.

Unlike the smallpox vaccine which was made in Bangladesh by the Institute of Public Health (IPH) at insignificant cost and which led to eradication of smallpox from Bangladesh, the six EPI vaccines that are being used in the EPI programme are purchased from abroad. At present the cost of fully immunising a child in Bangladesh with the six EPI vaccines has been variously estimated. A reasonable estimate is $11.76 per child, which has been made recently by the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) based on total spending of $18.3 million to immunise 1.56 million infants under the age of one year during a one year period, 1997-98. Since the EPI programme is a highly sustainable activity, empowerment of the national biomedical facilities to acquire vaccine production capability is being addressed by the government in order that the future demand for the EPI vaccines can be fully met by productions made in the country. [Zia Uddin Ahmed]

''See also'' [[Extended Programme on Immunisation|expanded programme ]][[Extended Programme on Immunisation|on immunisation]];[[National Immunisation Day| national immunisation day]];[[Vaccination| vaccination]].

[[Category:Health Sciences]]

[[bn:হুপিং কাশি]]

White Paper, 1971

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'''White Paper, 1971''' The White Paper published by the Government of Pakistan on 5 August 1971 contains the explanation and description of the actions taken by the military government from the night of 25 March 1971. The purpose of publishing the White Paper was to justify the actions of the Pakistan military authority from the night of 25 March and to relate incidents prior to the War of Liberation. This was intended to justify the stand of the government of Pakistan at home and abroad. In the White Paper, Pakistan tried to assert justification for the genocide, destructive actions and crimes on the one hand and efforts were made to distort facts through negative presentation of the role of the Awami League, including its leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other leaders and activists in the war of liberation on the other.

The White Paper contains an introduction, conclusion, appendices and four chapters. In these chapters events prior to 1971, the role of the freedom lovers including the Awami League in the freedom fighting and the stand taken by the Government of Pakistan in this issue are discussed. It is clear from the statement made in the introduction that the white paper was published by the government of Pakistan as a face saving measure to their misdeeds. It relates, 'This White Paper is the first full detailed report of the present critical situation of East Pakistan. The present crisis is the outcome of failure to reach a consensus by the elected public representatives about the basic agenda to form a federation due to the adverse attitude of the leaders of the Awami League. The Awami League leaders tried to turn the peoples' verdict in favour of autonomy into a cessationist movement''. In these introductory sentences the Awami League was held responsible for the cessation despite the good intention of the government of Pakistan to hand over power. But such allegations are not supported by the events that happened during those days.

The first chapter deals with the promulgation of the martial law by Yahya Khan on 26 March 1969 in the context of political agitation against the Constitution since 1962. Plausible arguments were put forward about the sincerity of Yahya Khan to implement democracy, election of 1970, and the sincerity and impartiality of the military government in this election. Full details of the Legal Framework Order are incorporated in the White Paper. The non-cooperation movement led by the Awami League since the election till 15 March 1971 and efforts to establish 'Bangabhumi' or 'Bangladesh' during this period by the Awami League are discussed in details. About the non-cooperation movement it is said in the White Paper that the call for strikes and demonstration of terror by the Awami League paralyzed the normal life of the whole of East Pakistan. This led to the quick deterioration of the law and order situation. The chapter is closed with the description of an interview of Sheikh Mujib given to the Times. In it he said about the West Pakistanis that, 'I shall cripple them and shall force them to bow down'. The debate that is made from different corners about the declaration of independence is thus clearly resolved and that the independence was declared by Shaikh Mujib clearly emerges from this part of the White Paper.

In the second chapter events from March 15 to 25 of 1971 are narrated and efforts to establish Bangladesh by the Awami League and Shaikh Mujib are reported. Even a plan of armed revolution by the Awami League in the morning of 26 March is also mentioned. It is told that the government of Pakistan launched the military operation to avoid this untoward situation and to maintain the solidarity of Pakistan. The Awami League wanted to establish a separate 'Bangladesh' state through this plan. Needless to say this tantamount to finish the aims for which Pakistan was established by the Father of the Nation (Mohammad Ali Jinnah).

In the third chapter a description is given of how a reign of terror was let loose in East Pakistan by the Awami League. According to the White Paper the Awami League operated a large scale terrorist activity from March 1 to 15 on the non-Bangalis in Dhaka and at other places of the country. It tried to establish the fact by quoting from various dailies that the Bangalis conducted a mass killing. The Bengalees killed 180 women and children in Chittagong although other sources do not testify to the incidents.

In the fourth chapter the role of India in Pakistan crisis is discussed. India's role in supplying arms and providing training to the freedom fighters, formation of the government in exile, and creation of public opinion in favour of Bangladesh in international arena are described in details. In conclusion it said that all efforts and moves of the Government of Pakistan failed because of the non-cooperation of the Awami League and the Bangalis. It was because of this reason that the government was forced to take resort to very extreme measure, i.e military operation.

In the appendices there are excerpts from the policy making speech of President Yahya Khan, the Legal Framework Order 1970, Six points of the Awami League, different directives of the Awami League and Draft Declaration (March 1971), the Constitution of the People's Republic of Pakistan 1962, and a list of major killings. In the last appendix it is alleged that the Bangalis killed about sixty thousand Biharis although this was not found true from the writings of the generals and politicians of Pakistan.

Bangali leaders and the government in exile denounced the White Paper. To save her face the Pakistan Government published the White Paper after long five months into the war only to humiliate the Awami League before the world and to prove the war of independence as a cessationist movement and a civil war. Hence this White Paper can be termed as a document of false information and misrepresentation of facts. Efforts to suppress the facts by wrong information and statements actually helped unearth the facts, the reality. It had no acceptability to the Bangalis and to the people of the world as well. The White Paper was considered to be a document of the Pakistanis and of their local collaborators. [Abu Md. Delwar Hossain]

[[bn:শ্বেতপত্র ১৯৭১]]

White Paper

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'''White Paper''' The term 'white paper' is generally associated with the parliamentary tradition of the United Kingdom, but is said to be followed by other western countries such as Australia and Canada which have the same parliamentary model of government. White Papers are documents produced by the government setting out details of future policies on particular subjects and circulated by the government prior to laying out of a policy, or a proposal for action, or current issues of public concern. It may come as reform issues or a new legislation. The White Paper allows the government an opportunity to gather feedback before it formally presents the policies or a Bill for legislation before the Parliament.

White Papers are also issued by the European Commission. These are documents that outline proposals for action in a specific area.

In the United Kingdom, it is said to have been put more in practice to make room for an 'Open Government' recommended by the Fulton Committee of 1968. However, the practice of issuing White Paper was in vogue as seen from Churchill White Paper, 1922, White Paper of 1939 calling for the creation of a united Palestinian state. Some important White Papers of Australia and Canada respectively include White Paper on Full Employment (1945) and White Paper on Defence (1964).

In the British parliamentary tradition, there is also the concept and practice of issuing a Green Paper. This is basically consultation document on various issue of public concern. It is a discussion document in which the government outlines a problem, makes proposals for dealing with it, and invites public comments on the proposal. The practice is also vogue in Australia and Canada as well as the European Commission.

By contrast, White Papers are sometimes issued by the Government of Bangladesh not as draft statements policy but as documents to inform the public about the misdeeds of the immediately preceding government of a different political party. The White Paper published by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party led government after 2001, is a case in point.

The concept of issuing a Green Paper in a formal sense and in the way it is done in the United Kingdom and followed by other western democracies that practice white hall type of democracy, is absent in Bangladesh. However, whether it relates to framing of policy or of proposing an action on important public welfare issues, the practice now is to hold workshops and seminars with relevant persons and institutions before it is given final shape. Consultation with aid-giving agencies and countries is also a part of this process. Examples are Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), local government reform, public administration reform etc. In addition to the above, private sector thinkers also periodically bring out important action proposals on reform issues. [AMM Shawkat Ali]

'''Bibliography''' Frank Stacey, British Government 1966-1975, Years of Reform (1975), Macmillan Publishers.

[[bn:শ্বেতপত্র]]

White Clay

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'''White Clay''' high quality [[Clay|clay]] composed of kaolin clay mineral and used mainly in the ceramic industry. In Bangladesh it is used widely as household wares.

There are surface to near surface deposits of white clay in Bijoypur and Gopalpur area of Netrokona district, Nalitabari of Sherpur district, Haidgaon of Chittagong district and Baitul Izzat of Satkania thana, Chittagong district. Besides there are subsurface deposits of white clay in Maddhyapara, Barapukuria, Dighipara of Dinajpur district and Patnitala of Naogaon district. The exposed white clay is not good in quality. It is used in the ceramic factories of Bangladesh after mixing with high quality imported clay.

[[Image:WhiteClay.jpg|thumb|400px|right|White clay, Netrokna]]
The Geological Survey of Pakistan (GSP) first discovered white clay at Bhedikura of Durgapur Thana in the Mymensingh district in 1957. Later on in 1957-58, geological mapping in that area was furnished. In 1964-65 GSP drilled 13 holes in the area to determine the thickness and reserves. In 1978, 1980 and 1983 the [[Geological Survey of Bangladesh|geological survey of bangladesh]] (GSB) conducted detail investigation in the area. The extent of white clay in layers and lenses was found at Bhedikura to Maizpara in the west and Fundakura to Gopalpur in the east. The reserves is 2.47 million ton in an area of 3.84 sq km up to the down dip of 60m. This is known as Bijoypur white clay. The white clay at Bhuranga area of Nalitabari upazila in Sherpur district was discovered in 1990 by the GSB.

Lenses of white clay are present in this area. The reserves are 0.0013 million ton in an area of 0.40 sq km. GSB discovered scattered lenses of white clay at Haidgaon area of Chandanaish upazila in Chittagong district in 1976. In this area the deposit is 0.0019 million tons only. The deposits found at Baitul-Izzat area of Satkania upazila are 0.0025 million tons. These clays are low-grade clay.

The subsurface deposit of white clay was first discovered at Patnitala of Naogaon district in 1965 at the depths ranging from 340m to 350m while drilling for economic minerals in the area by GSP. The white clay at Maddhyapara area was found by GSB in 1974 at a depth ranging from 128 m to 156 m below the surface while drilling for hard rock. This clay was found on the top of the Precambrian hard rock. The thickness of this clay ranges from 1.2m to 6.4m and the reserves in an area of one sq km is 15 million ton. The white clay at Barapukuria of Dinajpur district was discovered by the GSB in 1985 while drilling for coal in the area. The white clay is found at the top of the Permian Gondwana formation at the depths ranging from 118m to 184m below the surface. The thickness of this clay is 1.98m to 12.5m and the reserve is 25 million ton in an area of I sq km. In 1994 white clay was discovered by GSB at Dighipara area of Dinajpur district while drilling for coal. This clay is present on the top of the Gondwana Formation at a depth ranging from 325m to 328m. Detail investigation on this clay is yet to be done. The subsurface deposit of white clay is rather difficult to mine. [QM Arifur Rahman]

[[Category:Natural Sciences]]

[[bn:চীনামাটি]]