Still My Guitar Gently Weeps: When will we say thanks?
Asrar Chowdhury
Spotlight
Daily Star Campus
Sun 22 March 2009
Independence Day Issue
URL: http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/03/04/camspotlight_guitar.htm
With every mistake, we must surely be learning
(Still) My guitar gently weeps
George Harrison at the Concert for Bangladesh, 1st August 1971
1971. Three million lives. 266 days. 7.83 lives per minute. This is just the human price Bangladesh paid for her freedom. During those dark days as the genocide and atrocities were mounting we did have friends in the outside world who made an effort to create awareness of what was really going on in Bangladesh.
The sixties was a decade where popular music reached the status of classic art. This is true for the western world and also our sub-continent. Music is one of the few existing media that has the power to transcend time and space among people. For centuries music has been the catalyst that bounded people from diverse backgrounds in our sub-continent.
With a flowering sixties almost ready to blossom, it was evident music would soon become a weapon in the hands of the wise to protest unjust causes. It was in this background that a child from the East (Jessore, Bangladesh), Ravi Shankar, approached a child from the West (Liverpool, Britain), George Harrison, to create international awareness about the Liberation War of Bangladesh. The collaboration became one of the most influential experiences ever in western popular music.
The stage was set. The friendly people of the United States of America gave a welcoming hand. And the Concert for Bangladesh was staged at Madison Square Garden, New York, on Sunday the First Day of August, 1971. Ravi Shankar rightfully summed up to the 40,000 odd audience that evening, 'Friends, we are artists, not politicians'. Indeed, artists from two different cultures congregated towards a common cause. And through their music they let the world become politically aware of genocides that were being committed on innocent civilians in Bangladesh by vested groups seeking to achieve their narrow goals.
Much has been said and much will be said about the Concert for Bangladesh. Displeasingly though, after all these decades, as a Nation, we never had the 'courage' to honour Ravi Shankar, George Harrison and Friends. There have, however, been initiatives at individual or group levels. The most recent includes the Muktijuddha Jadughar's initiative to celebrate Harrison's Birthday on 25 February this year. The Muktijuddha Jadughar also recently accepted a bronze plaque of Harrison that was presented by Dennis Theophillus of Britain. In spite of all these efforts, the end seems to be a light year ahead if the State remains indifferent or silent for that matter.
For a Nation, it is never too late to amend hiccups of the road. The stage is once again set. 2009 brings new hope that we finally start to set 1971 straight and move on forward as a Nation to our rightful place on the world stage. It is high time we acknowledge Concert for Bangladesh at the State level. I, personally, pray this is the last time I write on this issue. If not, I will carry on doing so. As long as our songs of freedom are alive, as a Nation we will be alive. The least we can do is pass those songs on to the generation that will take Bangladesh forward when none of us will be around.
And till that day arrives, “with every mistake, we must surely be learning”. And Till that day arrives, let Harrison's “guitar gently weep”!
(The author thanks the Muktijuddha Jadughar and Akku Chowdhury for their co-operation in collecting information for this feature.)
Copyright (R) thedailystar.net 2009
Showing posts with label Liberation War. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Liberation War. Show all posts
Saturday, April 30, 2011
DS: 16 Dec 2008 Supplement: Interview on Fateh Ali Chowdhury
Daily Star
16 December 2008 Special Issue
Interview on Fateh Ali Chowdhury
URL: http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2008/16th_dec/mundane.htm
“Free the mundane present from the glorious past”
Asrar Chowdhury
1971. Three million lives. 266 days. 7.83 lives per minute. This is just the human price Bangladesh paid for her freedom. Fate had it I missed the 1971 'Train to Bangladesh'. History wasn't on my side. I belong to the post-1971 generation. As a Nation we're lucky though. The 'living' of 1971 have preserved the stories of the 'dead' of 1971. Through these stories, the fire and the spirit of 1971 have been preserved for us. If another train does blow her whistle in my lifetime, I surely won't miss it.
Any student of the Muktijuddha has heard the name of Fateh Ali Chowdhury. A Freedom Fighter of Sector 2, he was a part of a few critical operations of our Muktibahini. The irony is, not too many have heard him speak about his experiences and thoughts on the Muktijuddha. He likes to stay away from the limelight. But then. The post-1971 generation can't always accept silence as a virtue. I couldn't resist myself when I heard he agreed to talk about his experiences and thoughts on 1971. I certainly didn't want to miss this 'Train.'
When the Muktijuddha started, Fateh Ali Chowdhury was a student of the final year in English at Dhaka University. Bright careers chased University students in those days. But that wasn't to be. Life seldom goes as planned. His was a generation that was at the crossroads of history. Many like him soon found themselves pursuing a much brighter career. Defending the honour of the Motherland to establish the foundations of a Free Bangladesh.
“We didn't decide to go to war. It just happened. After the crackdown on 26 March, when we saw our own people being slaughtered like game, we found ourselves in a position where joining the war was the only option. And like many others, we went out to defend the honour of the Motherland”. Fateh Bhai puffed his cigarette and carried on. “This is probably the same story of all of us who fought in 1971.”
Fateh Ali Chowdhury was a member of the Crack Platoon of Sector 2. The Dhaka Operation of Crack Platoon 2 in late August 1971 is a turning point in our Muktijuddha. There may be romanticism in fighting a war, but the scars can stay for as long as one lives. On 29 August, nine Freedom Fighters of Crack Platoon 2 were caught. Rumi, Altaf Mahmud, Chullu, Badi, Jewel and Bakr were among them. Fateh Bhai became emotional. “It was then we realised there was no turning back.”
Two names, Fateh Ali Chowdhury and Habibul Alam will go down in history in the first two days of the existence of Bangladesh as an independent nation. The waiting was worth its weight in gold that day. To be able to hear the story from Fateh Bhai himself!
“Crack Platoon entered Dhaka on 16 December 1971” started Fateh Bhai. “Bangladesh was now a free country. I went inside Dhaka Cantonment with the Four Guards Regiment of the Indian Army in search of any Freedom Fighters who could have been held as prisoners. But I could not trace anybody in the total chaotic situation. I learned from a source that some of our Freedom Fighters from the Crack Platoon Operation of 29 August could be alive and were held in Dhaka Central Jail.”
“In the mean time, Habibul Alam and I decided it would be appropriate to open the Radio and BTV. The next morning, 17 December, we went to the Radio Office. Earlier, we contacted Shamsul Huda Chowdhury, Former Regional Director of Radio. He advised us on how to open the Radio. This would be the first broadcast in the air media of Independent Bangladesh. I clearly remember what I said”, Fateh Bhai said with emotional eyes.
“I am Fateh Ali Chowdhury, a Freedom Fighter of Sector 2. On behalf of the Fourth Bengal Regiment, Major Haider of Sector 2, Officer Commanding of Dhaka Operation will now speak”. There was a pause. Fateh Bhai took a deep breath. “Sir (Major Haider) spoke.”
“We then rushed off to Dhaka Central Jail. There wasn't a moment to lose.”
“Habibul Alam and I reached Dhaka Central Jail before noon. We asked the Jail Officer if there were any Freedom Fighters among the prisoners. And then we asked how many of the prisoners could be freed according to Law.”
“We learned that four Freedom Fighters were in the Jail. They were Masud Sadeque Chullu, Abdus Samad, Kazi Iqbal and Ahsanullah. The Jail Officer made a list of the Freedom Fighters, Political Prisoners, and those charged with Petty Crimes who could be freed according to Law. He handed the list to Habibul Alam. Habib signed on behalf of the Fourth Bengal Regiment. I countersigned. Dhaka Jail was opened. We then went to open BTV.”
“Shamsul Huda Chowdhury advised us to contact Ejaz Ahmed to open BTV. We did so. This time I was more tensed than the entire nine months of our freedom struggle. Shimul Billah sang the National Anthem. We made the same statement as we did on Radio. And that was it. Our Radio, Dhaka Jail and BTV were opened.”
"I was just the rubber-stamp of history. If I weren't there that day, somebody else would have done what I did. In the words of my friend, the noted singer Azam Khan, I want to say 'Today Bangladesh is free. And this is my achievement.'"
“Very few Nations have the privilege of fighting a War of Independence. It's true that I was one of the Freedom Fighters who fought with arms. But then, a true victory would never have been possible if the Nation didn't participate. Those who didn't fight with arms are also Freedom Fighters. The death toll itself speaks. We fought the Muktijuddha as One Nation. I'm honoured to have been a part of this history. That's all.”
I had to ask Fateh Bhai the question many would like to ask. “Why don't you normally talk about 1971”? Fateh Bhai looked at me. His eyes gave the indication I was about to witness history in the making.
“History cannot be contemporaneous. What I am saying now and you are writing is documentation only. History can only be written by posterity.”
I now understood Fateh Bhai's 'sounds of silence'. But then. The post-1971 generation expects more than just mere documentation. Fateh Bhai looked at me again. This time his eyes had a childlike look. He wanted to say something to us.
“The spirit and the fire of 1971 now rest in the hands of the young of today's Bangladesh. It's your responsibility to play your part in taking Bangladesh forward. It's your responsibility to do something positive for your posterity. This is all our generation expects. Nothing more. Nothing less!”
Fateh Ali Chowdhury's famous last words were “Free the mundane present from the glorious past!”
Acknowledgement: Thanks to Mirza M Eyahia and Rezaul Amin, Freedom Fighters of Sector 2 for arranging the interview.
Asrar Chowdhury is a Faculty in Economics at Jahangirnagar University.
16 December 2008 Special Issue
Interview on Fateh Ali Chowdhury
URL: http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2008/16th_dec/mundane.htm
“Free the mundane present from the glorious past”
Asrar Chowdhury
1971. Three million lives. 266 days. 7.83 lives per minute. This is just the human price Bangladesh paid for her freedom. Fate had it I missed the 1971 'Train to Bangladesh'. History wasn't on my side. I belong to the post-1971 generation. As a Nation we're lucky though. The 'living' of 1971 have preserved the stories of the 'dead' of 1971. Through these stories, the fire and the spirit of 1971 have been preserved for us. If another train does blow her whistle in my lifetime, I surely won't miss it.
Any student of the Muktijuddha has heard the name of Fateh Ali Chowdhury. A Freedom Fighter of Sector 2, he was a part of a few critical operations of our Muktibahini. The irony is, not too many have heard him speak about his experiences and thoughts on the Muktijuddha. He likes to stay away from the limelight. But then. The post-1971 generation can't always accept silence as a virtue. I couldn't resist myself when I heard he agreed to talk about his experiences and thoughts on 1971. I certainly didn't want to miss this 'Train.'
When the Muktijuddha started, Fateh Ali Chowdhury was a student of the final year in English at Dhaka University. Bright careers chased University students in those days. But that wasn't to be. Life seldom goes as planned. His was a generation that was at the crossroads of history. Many like him soon found themselves pursuing a much brighter career. Defending the honour of the Motherland to establish the foundations of a Free Bangladesh.
“We didn't decide to go to war. It just happened. After the crackdown on 26 March, when we saw our own people being slaughtered like game, we found ourselves in a position where joining the war was the only option. And like many others, we went out to defend the honour of the Motherland”. Fateh Bhai puffed his cigarette and carried on. “This is probably the same story of all of us who fought in 1971.”
Fateh Ali Chowdhury was a member of the Crack Platoon of Sector 2. The Dhaka Operation of Crack Platoon 2 in late August 1971 is a turning point in our Muktijuddha. There may be romanticism in fighting a war, but the scars can stay for as long as one lives. On 29 August, nine Freedom Fighters of Crack Platoon 2 were caught. Rumi, Altaf Mahmud, Chullu, Badi, Jewel and Bakr were among them. Fateh Bhai became emotional. “It was then we realised there was no turning back.”
Two names, Fateh Ali Chowdhury and Habibul Alam will go down in history in the first two days of the existence of Bangladesh as an independent nation. The waiting was worth its weight in gold that day. To be able to hear the story from Fateh Bhai himself!
“Crack Platoon entered Dhaka on 16 December 1971” started Fateh Bhai. “Bangladesh was now a free country. I went inside Dhaka Cantonment with the Four Guards Regiment of the Indian Army in search of any Freedom Fighters who could have been held as prisoners. But I could not trace anybody in the total chaotic situation. I learned from a source that some of our Freedom Fighters from the Crack Platoon Operation of 29 August could be alive and were held in Dhaka Central Jail.”
“In the mean time, Habibul Alam and I decided it would be appropriate to open the Radio and BTV. The next morning, 17 December, we went to the Radio Office. Earlier, we contacted Shamsul Huda Chowdhury, Former Regional Director of Radio. He advised us on how to open the Radio. This would be the first broadcast in the air media of Independent Bangladesh. I clearly remember what I said”, Fateh Bhai said with emotional eyes.
“I am Fateh Ali Chowdhury, a Freedom Fighter of Sector 2. On behalf of the Fourth Bengal Regiment, Major Haider of Sector 2, Officer Commanding of Dhaka Operation will now speak”. There was a pause. Fateh Bhai took a deep breath. “Sir (Major Haider) spoke.”
“We then rushed off to Dhaka Central Jail. There wasn't a moment to lose.”
“Habibul Alam and I reached Dhaka Central Jail before noon. We asked the Jail Officer if there were any Freedom Fighters among the prisoners. And then we asked how many of the prisoners could be freed according to Law.”
“We learned that four Freedom Fighters were in the Jail. They were Masud Sadeque Chullu, Abdus Samad, Kazi Iqbal and Ahsanullah. The Jail Officer made a list of the Freedom Fighters, Political Prisoners, and those charged with Petty Crimes who could be freed according to Law. He handed the list to Habibul Alam. Habib signed on behalf of the Fourth Bengal Regiment. I countersigned. Dhaka Jail was opened. We then went to open BTV.”
“Shamsul Huda Chowdhury advised us to contact Ejaz Ahmed to open BTV. We did so. This time I was more tensed than the entire nine months of our freedom struggle. Shimul Billah sang the National Anthem. We made the same statement as we did on Radio. And that was it. Our Radio, Dhaka Jail and BTV were opened.”
"I was just the rubber-stamp of history. If I weren't there that day, somebody else would have done what I did. In the words of my friend, the noted singer Azam Khan, I want to say 'Today Bangladesh is free. And this is my achievement.'"
“Very few Nations have the privilege of fighting a War of Independence. It's true that I was one of the Freedom Fighters who fought with arms. But then, a true victory would never have been possible if the Nation didn't participate. Those who didn't fight with arms are also Freedom Fighters. The death toll itself speaks. We fought the Muktijuddha as One Nation. I'm honoured to have been a part of this history. That's all.”
I had to ask Fateh Bhai the question many would like to ask. “Why don't you normally talk about 1971”? Fateh Bhai looked at me. His eyes gave the indication I was about to witness history in the making.
“History cannot be contemporaneous. What I am saying now and you are writing is documentation only. History can only be written by posterity.”
I now understood Fateh Bhai's 'sounds of silence'. But then. The post-1971 generation expects more than just mere documentation. Fateh Bhai looked at me again. This time his eyes had a childlike look. He wanted to say something to us.
“The spirit and the fire of 1971 now rest in the hands of the young of today's Bangladesh. It's your responsibility to play your part in taking Bangladesh forward. It's your responsibility to do something positive for your posterity. This is all our generation expects. Nothing more. Nothing less!”
Fateh Ali Chowdhury's famous last words were “Free the mundane present from the glorious past!”
Acknowledgement: Thanks to Mirza M Eyahia and Rezaul Amin, Freedom Fighters of Sector 2 for arranging the interview.
Asrar Chowdhury is a Faculty in Economics at Jahangirnagar University.
Our paths may differ, but our destination is the same. DS23-03-08
Our paths may differ, but our destination is the same
By Asrar Chowdhury
Daily Star
Star Campus
Sunday 23 March 2008 (pp 10-11)
Independence Day Issue
URL: http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2008/03/04/camspotlight_paths.htm
Spotlight
Our paths may differ, but our destination is the same
There's so much time to make up
Everywhere you turn
Time we have wasted on the way
-- Graham Nash, Wasted on the way
The Indian Statesman, Gopal Krishna Gokhale once said, “What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow”. Small wonder. In Nobel Prizes alone, Bengal as a region has produced four laureatesRabindranath Tagore, Mother Teresa, Amartya Sen, and Muhammad Yunus. That's more than any other region in the entire sub-continent. What a contrast when one sees through another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
Modern day Bengal in Bangladesh was known as a bottomless basket in the 1970s, and the most corrupt nation in the final years of the twentieth century. What a grand way to finish off an old and start a new millennium! An even more contrast when one sees through another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
1971. In just 266 days, three million people sacrificed their lives to create a flag, a country, a ten-lettered word, BANGLADESH. This is just the human price Bangladesh paid for her freedom. Arithmetically, this stands at 7.83 lives per minute! Whichever side of the fence one belongs to, the absolute is clear. Bangladesh was born out of one of the bloodiest genocides in history.
It's the absolute, not the relative that makes Bangladesh so unique. It's here that our paths converge. It's here that our destination is the same. Here's another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
Did you know there's something like 32 variations in our folk music? Did you know that our Bhatiyali is based on the classical Khamwaj Raga? When most nations can show mostly qudratonic or pentatonic folk music, our Bhatiyali comes with a white rabbit from the magician's hat with a sampurna raga that includes all seven notes of the octave.
How many regions are there in this world where each season has its unique flowers, fruits and vegetables? And each season can boast a variety that matches the seven colours of the rainbow? Not too many. Bangladesh is truly unique in this rare league of nations.
If you didn't know the above, you do now.
It's only recently that the world is slowly finding out about Cox's Bazaar and the Sundarbans. For rightful reasons, these natural treasures should be included in the seven natural wonders of the world.
The list that has started can truly go on and on till the wee hours of the dawn. But that's not the objective of this story. The objective is to show that it's in the absolute, not the relative where our paths converge; our destination becomes the same. Yet another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
The greatest mystique poet of all times, Sheikh Jalaluddin Rumi wrote a powerful prose in his Table Talk. Rumi describes a pilgrimage. The pilgrims come from all different directions to the pilgrimage. They face different hardships on their way. Each different group has different stories to tell. After they finish offering their different souls to the altar they start to quarrel. Each different group argues that their path was the best and the hardest to the pilgrimage. All these relative arguments fail to see and appreciate the absolute. It's here that Rumi smiles with all his spirituality and Sufi wisdom. The pilgrims fail to see that their different paths lead them to the same destination, the pilgrimage where they all offered their souls to the same Creator. Rumi reminds us, our paths may differ, but our destination is the same.
On 26 March 2008, Bangladesh will complete 37 years of her existence as an Independent State. We live maximum seven to eight decades as humans, but societies live on for centuries. This is why 37 years isn't really that much time in a nation's history. Social changes can sometimes take decades or even centuries to accomplish into maturity. This is still not the objective of the story. The objective of this story is Rumi and his Sufi wisdom.
In the 37 years of our short existence we've debated one issue after another. We've failed to see what lies beneath our nose. The paths of the Brahmaputra, the Padma, and the Meghna differ, but they do meet. They meet at a common destination- The Bay of Bengal. No matter how different our paths may be, they meet at a common destination-Bangladesh.
There's so much water moving underneath the bridge
Let the water come and carry us away
-- Graham Nash, Wasted on the way
It took 214 years from Palassey in 1757 to reach Bangladesh in 1971. Many generations before us played their roles to give us a common stage to perform on; a stage called Bangladesh. The mantle of the soul and spirit of Bangladesh now rests on the shoulders of the generation of the Campus. It's this young generation that will, hopefully, take Bangladesh to her rightful place in the world stage.
Gopal Krishna Gokhale didn't make his observation from emptiness or for nothing. Many before him had inklings on the potential of Bengal and Bangladesh. Many still do. I happen to be one of them. It is true that we could have achieved more. It's also true that we do have achievements to show. Bangladesh isn't a bottomless basket. We have many unique things to show. Some of them have been shown here.
This story is a food for thought for the Campus. The generation that will take Bangladesh forward when we won't be around. Then we'll see through your eyes, speak through your minds and love through your hearts; like others have done through us and through many before us. The beauty of your generation is the greatest power of youth.
No matter how different our paths may be, our destination is the sameBangladesh. Whatever time we've wasted on the way, may the mighty waters of the Brahmaputra, the Padma, and the Meghna come and carry us away to the Bay of Bengal.
Shubho Shwadhinata Dibosh!
Asrarul Chowdhury teaches economics at Jahangirnagar, and North South University.
By Asrar Chowdhury
Daily Star
Star Campus
Sunday 23 March 2008 (pp 10-11)
Independence Day Issue
URL: http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2008/03/04/camspotlight_paths.htm
Spotlight
Our paths may differ, but our destination is the same
There's so much time to make up
Everywhere you turn
Time we have wasted on the way
-- Graham Nash, Wasted on the way
The Indian Statesman, Gopal Krishna Gokhale once said, “What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow”. Small wonder. In Nobel Prizes alone, Bengal as a region has produced four laureatesRabindranath Tagore, Mother Teresa, Amartya Sen, and Muhammad Yunus. That's more than any other region in the entire sub-continent. What a contrast when one sees through another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
Modern day Bengal in Bangladesh was known as a bottomless basket in the 1970s, and the most corrupt nation in the final years of the twentieth century. What a grand way to finish off an old and start a new millennium! An even more contrast when one sees through another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
1971. In just 266 days, three million people sacrificed their lives to create a flag, a country, a ten-lettered word, BANGLADESH. This is just the human price Bangladesh paid for her freedom. Arithmetically, this stands at 7.83 lives per minute! Whichever side of the fence one belongs to, the absolute is clear. Bangladesh was born out of one of the bloodiest genocides in history.
It's the absolute, not the relative that makes Bangladesh so unique. It's here that our paths converge. It's here that our destination is the same. Here's another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
Did you know there's something like 32 variations in our folk music? Did you know that our Bhatiyali is based on the classical Khamwaj Raga? When most nations can show mostly qudratonic or pentatonic folk music, our Bhatiyali comes with a white rabbit from the magician's hat with a sampurna raga that includes all seven notes of the octave.
How many regions are there in this world where each season has its unique flowers, fruits and vegetables? And each season can boast a variety that matches the seven colours of the rainbow? Not too many. Bangladesh is truly unique in this rare league of nations.
If you didn't know the above, you do now.
It's only recently that the world is slowly finding out about Cox's Bazaar and the Sundarbans. For rightful reasons, these natural treasures should be included in the seven natural wonders of the world.
The list that has started can truly go on and on till the wee hours of the dawn. But that's not the objective of this story. The objective is to show that it's in the absolute, not the relative where our paths converge; our destination becomes the same. Yet another angle of the kaleidoscopic prism.
The greatest mystique poet of all times, Sheikh Jalaluddin Rumi wrote a powerful prose in his Table Talk. Rumi describes a pilgrimage. The pilgrims come from all different directions to the pilgrimage. They face different hardships on their way. Each different group has different stories to tell. After they finish offering their different souls to the altar they start to quarrel. Each different group argues that their path was the best and the hardest to the pilgrimage. All these relative arguments fail to see and appreciate the absolute. It's here that Rumi smiles with all his spirituality and Sufi wisdom. The pilgrims fail to see that their different paths lead them to the same destination, the pilgrimage where they all offered their souls to the same Creator. Rumi reminds us, our paths may differ, but our destination is the same.
On 26 March 2008, Bangladesh will complete 37 years of her existence as an Independent State. We live maximum seven to eight decades as humans, but societies live on for centuries. This is why 37 years isn't really that much time in a nation's history. Social changes can sometimes take decades or even centuries to accomplish into maturity. This is still not the objective of the story. The objective of this story is Rumi and his Sufi wisdom.
In the 37 years of our short existence we've debated one issue after another. We've failed to see what lies beneath our nose. The paths of the Brahmaputra, the Padma, and the Meghna differ, but they do meet. They meet at a common destination- The Bay of Bengal. No matter how different our paths may be, they meet at a common destination-Bangladesh.
There's so much water moving underneath the bridge
Let the water come and carry us away
-- Graham Nash, Wasted on the way
It took 214 years from Palassey in 1757 to reach Bangladesh in 1971. Many generations before us played their roles to give us a common stage to perform on; a stage called Bangladesh. The mantle of the soul and spirit of Bangladesh now rests on the shoulders of the generation of the Campus. It's this young generation that will, hopefully, take Bangladesh to her rightful place in the world stage.
Gopal Krishna Gokhale didn't make his observation from emptiness or for nothing. Many before him had inklings on the potential of Bengal and Bangladesh. Many still do. I happen to be one of them. It is true that we could have achieved more. It's also true that we do have achievements to show. Bangladesh isn't a bottomless basket. We have many unique things to show. Some of them have been shown here.
This story is a food for thought for the Campus. The generation that will take Bangladesh forward when we won't be around. Then we'll see through your eyes, speak through your minds and love through your hearts; like others have done through us and through many before us. The beauty of your generation is the greatest power of youth.
No matter how different our paths may be, our destination is the sameBangladesh. Whatever time we've wasted on the way, may the mighty waters of the Brahmaputra, the Padma, and the Meghna come and carry us away to the Bay of Bengal.
Shubho Shwadhinata Dibosh!
Asrarul Chowdhury teaches economics at Jahangirnagar, and North South University.
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