Don’t destroy the Sundarbans

Authorities all over the world are continuously justifying their wrongdoings in the name of the greater good. This time, the Sundarbans has become the victim of that notion.The mangrove forest is about to be sacrificed in the name of the greater good but at a price that we cannot afford. It was not long ago that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina strongly accused developed countries for their contribution to global warming and urged them to compensate the sufferers, i.e. developing countries like Bangladesh, but now she has signed the death verdict on the Sundarbans.

The human race has been honoured with the highest dignity not just because of its independent thinking but for its ability to take care of wildlife, nature and the environment. But the intentional destruction of the Sundarbans is not only a suicidal move, it is also a violation of natural laws. It will make Bangladesh more vulnerable than we can imagine. The Sundarbans, shared by Bangladesh and India, and the largest mangrove forest in the world, is an enclosure for the coastal areas and gives the country protection from major natural calamities, such as past hurricanes like Sidr and Aila.

It is enriched with huge natural resources and is a safe-house of diverse wildlife. Most importantly, it is a natural holder of the ecological balance and our ecosystem. It provides livelihood to a great number of local inhabitants. In spite of all this, the government is advancing to install a coal-based thermal power plant of 1,320 MW capacity which will occupy almost 768 hectares of land and is barely 9km away from the Sundarbans.

Though, the government is considering this as a safe distance, the partner of this project, India, has passed its own law where they are not allowed to install such plants within the 25km radius of forests in their territory. Ironically, they are doing just that in our homeland and our government is acting like our resources belong to India, not to us. If this plant is installed, a huge amount of coal will be transported through the Possur River. The noise pollution and other waste produced from the plant will damage the biodiversity substantially. The fish in the confluence of the rivers will face extinction. The area will become uninhabitable, and the air will be so polluted that no living creature will be able to breathe there. The water of the rivers will be contaminated. The climate, topography, faunal and floral diversity will be destroyed. Allegedly, the materials which will be used in the plant contain hazardous chemicals such as sulphur, carbon dioxide, cadmium, radium, arsenic, lead, mercury and nickel.

These toxic chemicals could affect the health of the inhabitants, even those living in government-certified safe areas. According to rough estimations, this plant will immediately displace about 5,000 families from their land. A large number of forest-dependent poor people like honey-collectors and fishermen will get unemployed. The Sundarbans is a tourist attraction, a sector which will take a hit once the project starts.

Mangrove forest and it faunal diversity

Many studies have already been done by different think-tanks, researchers and journalists but no one could credibly claim that the benefit of this plant will outweigh the costs. It is true that our demand will increase day by day, but that does not mean that we should destroy all our natural treasures just to satiate our demands. There are many other viable options to produce energy. Solar power, windmills and biogas are options. The Sundarbans are unique and irreplaceable. As a lower riparian country and with low lands, we are vulnerable to coastal floods, cyclones and hurricanes. Without the Sundarbans our people cannot survive. We Bangladeshis are very good at seeing the near future and short-term benefits which cause us to lag behind other nations. It is high time we gained some wisdom. We must act before it is too late. Protesters of the initiative have been labelled “impractical” and “anti-development” by ministers and government advisers.

Other than the Hasina administration, not a single person has supported the idea of generating power at the cost of the destruction of the Sundarbans. This project will bring no benefit to our unborn generations, and the Sundarbans is not just an asset of Bangladesh, it belongs to the world. It is a world heritage site and the home of the world-famous endangered Royal Bengal Tiger. I implore all Bangladeshis as well as the world community to not turn a blind eye on this issue, but to listen to their conscience.

This is a time of moral crisis.

The article has been published in The Dhaka Tribune/ Op-ed/ Oct 12, 2013

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** Photographs are copied from Internet.

Quota system in civil service: An unjust solution

The preliminary test result of 34th BCS examination was recently published and has resulted in controversy, and mass disappointment, amongst the candidates. This year, the quota system was applied during the preliminary test, a change from previous years. The idea of the quota is already under dispute. In the BCS, 55% of seats are allocated for candidates who fall under quota, and 45% are for general students under meritocratic recruitment. Merit is virtually disregarded for quota holders, and this is unfair to the majority of students. There are quotas for freedom fighters’ children, women, indigenous people, etc. And the grades achieved can vary substantially between a passed quota holder and an unsuccessful general candidate.
 

The exam has three phases. The first stage is preliminary exam, consisting of multiple-choice questions that test variety of knowledge. The second is the written exam, which tests the capability of the candidates to express their views. The last one is viva Voce and that tests the adaptive and situational skills of potential candidates. The final stage is a background and security check. The government one of the largest institutions of the country, provides qualified persons through the BPSC (and thus through the BCS examination system) to the justice department, foreign cadre, police, tax and audit, and the different ministries. The government also oversees monopoly some utilities such as electricity, water and gas. Moreover, in every sector government has some business concerns like banks, insurances, telecoms and so forth.

To run this whole apparatus, the most important thing required is merit and excellence of staff. In the age of a market economy, diplomacy and competition, it is very hard to remain competitive and that is the exact reason quality, competence and excellence of the government personnel is needed. But the system of quota runs contrary to the above. Let’s have an in-depth look at the quota systems from both the government and general perspective. It is understandable that the quota system was inducted to mitigate inequalities among the citizens of our country. But this original reason has become outdated. The job of the government includes, but is not limited to, assisting indigenous people, who lag behind others, through the tribal quota of 5%, to pave the way of woman empowerment by reserving 20% for the ladies and to honor the memory of the freedom fighters and to recompense their family for their heroics through a quota of 30%. This system has opportunity costs. The government is losing the best possible workforce, and are instead employing less qualified people in highly challenging positions. That deprived meritorious workforce joins the private sector and are competing against public sector organisations. Consequently public ventures are becoming less profitable, as they lack qualified staff and management. The examples are apparent when one compares private banks and public banks or the telecommunications companies like Teletalk and Grameen Phone. Most of the public concerns are becoming backbenchers in the long term. The multinationals (MNCs) are using local talent and grabbing profits of public companies, and ultimately a large portions of the profits are siphoned away from the country. In another case, less qualified people in governmental jobs cannot compete with their counterparts in India, the US, or Europe in international negotiations where quality, competence and efficiency are regarded as resources, and are given highest priority. So, from a simple calculation we can clearly see that the government is losing much from quota system.

Instead of enforcing quota system, there are several other ways where the government can provide benefits to the quota holders. There are lots of non-cadre jobs which would be suitable for quota holders that would provide steady income and address inequality. Meanwhile the BPSC should reduce the quotas to 20%, and recommend that the government utilise the best human resources in the nation, in the best interests of the nation. If women and minorities are given the opportunity to go to school, college and university, then gender equality and empowerment will come about naturally and the quota will not be needed. BPSC, the government’s recruiting agency, should contemplate publicising the threshold marks in every phase of examination to make the whole process transparent, formulating a protocol where candidates can only apply to several posts that are compatible with their academic background, for example where an accounting major can apply only for audits and accounts, and tax cadres, candidates with a major in political science, international relations or public administration, can apply only for BCS administration, police and foreign affairs. That is only how the government can implement specialisation and can get the best service.

BPSC must shun any kind of political manipulation and influence in this highly important recruitment process. It is high timeto bring the entire system under scrutiny, and being it in line with international best practices so as to reap the highest benefit. Against this backdrop, if the government annuls the quota system then obviously some stakeholders will be disappointed, but it should be remembered that government’s responsibility is not to take a popular decision, but to take the right decision, which will best serve the attainment of the country's collective interests. 

The article has been published in The Dhaka Tribune/ Op-ed/ July 14, 2013

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Quotas in civil service: A too populist system

In most developing countries, the government is probably the largest employer with set rules and structured procedures for recruitments at various levels. In Bangladesh, the most prestigious public recruitment is that of the class one officers, commonly known as cadre employees. The recruitments are made through Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examination, conducted by the Bangladesh public service commission (BPSC). Very lately, the results of the preliminary test of 34th BCS have been published where a serious controversy has arisen among the candidates. It is found that the system of quota has been applied at the preliminary level of the test which was unprecedented until the current examination. The idea of quota has been a matter of discontent among many candidates for long. 

The reason can be well understood from the fact that 55 per cent of the posts are reserved for candidates under quota, while the remaining 45 per cent for candidates competing on the criterion of merit. Merit is virtually disregarded in case of those selected under quota and that is indeed frustrating for the majority of the candidates. The BCS exam has three phases. The first phase is the preliminary exam -- MCQ in nature. The second phase is the written test, and the last and final phase is viva voce. If everything comes out positively for the candidate through out the three phases, then he or she is through subject to police verification.

Since the government apparatus is the highest authority and largest institution of the country, candidates selected through the BCS exam should in all fairness be highly competent in order to be able to dispense important public functions from the very beginning of their career as civil servants. It is invariably so in case of all the posts, irrespective of the cadres. But the system of quota negates this very perception. It is understandable that the rationale of the introduction of quotas in civil service recruitment is to mitigate to a certain extent some prevailing social inequalities as well as empowerment of some sections of the society, such as women, tribal people etc. But the rationale has already lost some of its justifications and has become pointless in course of time. The job of the government includes welfare of all citizens and at the same time it has also to look after the special needs of people who lag behind. It is this consideration that has led to the concept of reserved quotas: tribal quota 5 per cent, woman quota 10 per cent and freedom fighter 30 per cent. Needless to say, experiences over the past decades reflect that this system has some opportunity costs.

The government is losing the best workforce and instead employing some less qualified people in responsible positions. It may sound a bit harsh but given the realities, we feel that there should be a reduction in the existing quotas, say to 20 per cent. Understandably, such a move may not be very well received, but we must not forget that this country is paying heavily on account of populist policies of the successive governments. Besides, in order to make the recruitment process more transparent, the BPSC should contemplate on publishing the results along with the marks obtained in each phase of the BCS examination, and introducing a system whereby candidates can only apply for posts compatible with their academic background.

For example, candidates with accounting major will apply only for audits & accounts and tax cadre, candidates with majors in political science, international relations and public administration can apply for administration, police and foreign affairs. 

That is how the government can implement specialisation and get the best service. BPSC must have to shun any kind of political manipulation and influence in this highly important recruitment process. It is high time to bring the entire system under scrutiny and to update it according to the standard practices followed in other countries.

 

This article has been published in The Financial Express/Views & Opinion/ July 13, 2013

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