ID :
10206
Tue, 06/17/2008 - 13:47
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/10206
The shortlink copeid
BIMSTEC MINISTRIAL MEETING IN DHAKA JULY 9
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 17 (BSS)- The Bay of Bengal Initiative for
Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)
ministerial meeting on poverty alleviation will be held here on
July 9.
Senior officials of the member countries will meet on July 8
to prepare the ground work for the meeting, official sources said
today.
The issues which are expected to figure prominently at the
meeting include food security, environment and climate change.
The senior officials of member countries are also expected to
discuss the mechanism for exchange of information on best
practices to tackle poverty, achieve millennium development goals
(MDGs) and explore ways and means to develop project based
collaboration among the member countries, the sources said.
BIMSTEC members are Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan,
Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
BSS/1340gmt
Enlistment of expatriates as voters under consideration: Anwarul Iqbal
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)- LGRD and Cooperatives Adviser Muhammad
Anwarul Iqbal today said the expatriates' demand to enlist them
as voters was under consideration of the government.
The election commission, he told a delegation of expatriates,
was working on the matter.
The delegation of expatriates living in the UK and Canada
called on him at his office, an official handout said.
The adviser said the government would discuss various
national issues with expatiates through video conferencing.
The government, he said, formulated municipal, city
corporation and local government commission ordinances.
Appointment of a local government commission to strengthen
local bodies, he said, was under process.
The delegation, led by Muhibur Rahman Muhib, requested the
adviser to ensure investment friendly atmosphere so that the
expatriates could invest in Bangladesh contribute to its
development.
BSS/1350gmt
BSS-07
ACC-HANIF
ACC drives have no link with next elections: Hanif
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)-Director General (DG) of the Anti-
Corruption Commission (ACC) Colonel Hanif Iqbal today ruled out
the notion that the activities of the commission are aimed at
debarring the accused persons contesting the next elections.
"Appropriate authorities will take decision on the matter in
the light of the existing laws. The ACC has no such intention to
convict anybody or prove any allegation to disqualify a person
from taking take part in the elections," he said.
The ACC DG, also the spokesman of the corruption watchdog,
said this during his regular press briefing in ACC conference
room here this afternoon.
He said the main goal of the ACC is to establish the
commission as an independent and neutral body and continue its
crusade against all evil activities considered as 'offense' in
the schedule of the ACC.
The DG said the issue of disqualifying the convicted persons
also came up for discussions during the regime of the past
governments. The decisions taken by those governments in this
regard still exist, he said.
The DG said the commission has been carrying out its anti-
corruption drive under the law and subsequent rules so far
framed. The commission would continue its drive against the
corrupt persons.
He said the ACC has given full concentration to inquiry and
investigation into the corruption allegations and putting up
those before the court of law for their logical conclusion.
"It is unlikely on the part of the commission to give
interpretation or opinion on any decision of the court or the
government," he said adding that 'however there is no scope to
exonerate anybody under the existing legal framework.
Col. Hanif Iqbal said the ACC has approved the chargesheet in
the graft case filed against chairman of Teknaf Pourasabha
Abdur Rahman Bodi with Double Mooring thana in December, 2007.
The commission also served notices on five persons including
Serniyabat Sadik Abdullah, son of Awami League leader Abul Hasnat
Abdullah, asking them to submit their wealth statement to the
commission. Other persons are Mer Hossain, former Deputy Director
of Public Housing Department, M Aslam, a technician of Bakhrabad
Gas System, S M Mosharraf Hossain, appraiser, Customs, Excise and
VAT (appeal), and Anisur Rahman, Finance and Accounts Officer of
Dock Labour Management Board, Chittagong.
The DG said the commission is yet to take any decision to
lodge complaint on the allegation of mismanagement of the fund of
Zia Orphanage as there are some ambiguities in the memo evidences
(ME) submitted by the enquiry officer to the commission.
He said the investigation officer (IO) of the graft case
against Mayor Sadek Hossain Khoka has submitted his report to the
commission, which now remained under process.
BSS/1400gmt
BSS-08
EPZ-INVESTMENT
HK & British Virgin Islands co to invest $3.1m in Ishwardi EPZ
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS) - A company of Hong Kong and British
Virgin Islands will invest US dollar 3.192 million to set up a
sweater manufacturing industry in Ishwardi Export Processing
Zone.
The 100 percent foreign owned company, Rosita Knitwears (Pvt)
Ltd, would employ 2,047 Bangladeshis and 30 foreign nationals,
and produce 1.75 million sweaters annually, a press release said.
An agreement to this effect was signed between the Bangladesh
Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) and Rosita Knitwears in
BEPZA Complex here today.
Member (Engineering) of BEPZA M Farhad Uddin and General
Manager of Rosita Knitwears Che Chit Meng signed the agreement on
behalf of their respective organizations.
Executive Chairman of BEPZA Brig Gen Jamil Ahmed Khan and
other officials of both sides were present on the occasion, said
the release.
BSS/1410gmt
BSS-09
BANGLA-FESTIVAL-NY
3-day Bangla Festival begins June 27 in NY
NEW York, June 16 (BSS) - A three-day `International Bangla
Festival' will begin at Mary Louis Academy in Queens here from
June 27 next.
Eminent writers and cultural personalities from Bangladesh
and West Bengal of India will participate in the festival.
New York based Mukta Dhara Foundation will organize the
Festival, which is expected to be inaugurated by noted writer
Hasan Azizul Huq.
Director of the Foundation Bishwajit Shaha told BSS today
that the main attractions of the Festival are Bangla parade and
book fair. "Various types of traditional masks have already been
brought from Bangladesh to make the parade colourful," he said.
Foreign Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, Youth and
Sports Minister of West Bengal Subhas Charkarbarti, poets Sunil
Ganguly, Belal Chowdhury, Shahid Quadri, Rafiq Azad and Joty
Prokash Dutta, Chairman of ATN Bangla Mahfuzur Rahman and
Managing Director of Channel-I Faridur Reza Sagar are expected to
join the Festival, he said.
Preparations for the festival are at the final stage, Shaha
added.
BSS/1420gmt
BSS-10
BANGLADESH-EU-CLARIFICATION
Foreign office clarifies "European Parliament hearing"
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS) - The foreign ministry today
contradicted a report carried by different newspapers on a
"European Parliament hearing" on Bangladesh's human rights
situation, saying it was not a meeting by any constituent organ
of the European Parliament.
"The (said) meeting was not organised by any constituent
organ of the European Parliament," a statement of the External
Publicity Wing of the foreign office said.
The statement said the meeting was an informal one where main
attendees were Europe-based leaders of a political party and two
members of the European Parliament attended the meeting in their
personal capacity.
Bangladesh Ambassador to the European Union AHM Moniruzzaman
briefed the participants of this "informal meeting" about the
various reform measures undertaken by the caretaker government
and progress on the "roadmap" for holding the general election in
the third week of December this year.
BSS/1430gmt
BSS-11
WATER
CS Karim for integrated strategy to solve water problems
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16(BSS)- Adviser for Water Resources Dr. C. S.
Karim today called for adopting an integrated strategy to resolve
the water problems in Bangladesh to achieve its millennium
development goal.
"If snows in the Himalayas melt it would not only affect
Bangladesh, but all the countries concerned will suffer heavily
on socio- economic realities", the adviser said as the chief
guest at a two-day dialogue on 'Prospect of the Rivers of the
Greater Himalayas- Bangladesh Perspective' at a local hotel.
The dialogue has been arranged jointly by the Water Resources
ministry and International Union for Conservation of Nature
(IUCN) with financial support of the World Bank, said a release
of the water resources ministry.
The adviser said "Our economy is related closely to our
rivers and culture". He said three major tans-boundary rivers
originated from the Himalaya have passed through Bangladesh to
the Bay of Bengal.
"We have to suffer from natural calamities like erosion at
rainy season and floods every year, since we do not have control
over these rivers", he told the dialogue while stressing on
improved relations with the neighbouring countries and developing
common strategies to resolve these problems.
Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Raja Debashish Roy was
the special guest at the function. It was chaired by secretary of
the water resources ministry Mohammad Ayub Mia.
Among others, Prof. Dr. Sajjadur Rashid of Dhaka University,
Mir Sajjad Hossain, member of the joint rivers commission, and
Dr.Ainun Nishat, Bangladesh representative of the International
Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN), spoke on the occasion.
The dialogue began last July in Dubai and would hold a follow
up meeting in Singapore next month.
BSS/1440gmt
BSS-12
ADB-CLIMATE
Reap benefit from climate investment funds: ADB
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)- Bangladesh should be prepared to
bargain its due stake over an emerging climate investment fund
(CIF), well ahead the pool financing starts offing in months for
developing countries vulnerable to climate change, said a senior
ADB official here.
Country Director of Asian Development Bank (ADB) Hua Du said
the government along with its development partners needs to
workout a plan and strategies to ask and convince the fund
mangers for providing adequate support both for mitigation and
adaptation purposes.
"Bangladesh is severely affected by climate change due to its
high reliance on nature, over population and geographic
location," Hua Du told BSS in an interview recently, after
attending last month's climate change workshop in Italy.
"The workshop was organised exclusively for
discussing Bangladesh issues," said the ADB chief, who leaves
Dhaka this month after six years of service in the local
resident mission of the Philippines-based lending agency.
The CIF, divided in two categories, is expected to pool
together five to six billion dollars initially from different
donors, especially from G8 countries, to help developing nations
to pursue cleaner development paths and protect themselves from
the impacts of climate change between now and 2012.
The funds are likely to be launched in the next few months
after the board of the World Bank, the key custodian of the
funds, approves them.
The ADB, African Development Bank, European Bank for
Reconstruction and Development, and the Inter-American
Development Bank are the co-managers of the fund.
These banks will help their client countries to access the
money, which is considered just half the size of the required 10
billion US dollar annually for developing world to absorb
climate change shocks.
"The CIF will be new and additional to the existing aid
commitments for developing countries to address urgent climate
change related challenges," said Hua Du.
She said Bangladesh should focus more onto adaptation fund
from external sources to ease pressure on its limited domestic
resources, along with the mitigation programmes.
She, however, suggested for using local technologies to make
programmes cost effective and encourage indigenous knowledge to
fight the human-induced natural disasters.
BSS/1450gmt
BSS-13
WEATHER LEAD
Rains across the country likely
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)- A monsoon depression, roosting in the
north Bay of Bengal near the Bangladesh shore, may cross the
coast tonight, triggering rains across the country, heavy along
coastal areas, met office sources said.
Rains and high winds are expected to wash away the sultry
weather of the past few days, bringing a touch of cool and
pleasant temperature of rainy season tomorrow.
The sources said the depression, carrying high winds and
bundles of clouds, may shore up the monsoon, lying a little idle
since it spread around the country on June 7.
As the depression was approaching the country's coastline to
dump its loads of rains and unleash the winds only Sylhet
recorded the highest 36mm rainfall during 12 hours between 6 am
and 6 pm today. It was followed by 26mm at Rajshahi and 15mm at
Bogra. Scattered rains were reported elsewhere of small amount.
But the met forecast for the next 24 hours beginning at 6 pm
today said light to moderate rains or thundershowers accompanied
by temporary gusty winds are likely at most places over Khulna,
Barisal and Chittagong divisions and at many places over Dhaka,
Rajshahi and Sylhet divisions with moderately heavy to heavy
falls at places over Khulna, Barisal and Chittagong divisions.
The day temperature may fall by 1-3 Celsius over the
country, the forecast added.
The highest maximum temperature in the country today was
36.2 degrees Celsius at Sylhet and the lowest minimum was 24.6C
at Sandwip.
The maximum temperature in Dhaka was 32.6C and minimum 26.5C,
Chittagong maximum 29.6C and minimum 25.4C, Rajshahi maximum
34.1C and minimum 26.8C, Khulna maximum 31C and minimum 27C,
Barisal maximum 30.8C and minimum 26.1C and Sylhet maximum 36.2C
and minimum 26.9C.
Rainfall activity may increase in next two days, the met
outlook for weather for 48 hours said. Little change in weather
is forecast in another five days, the met extended outlook added.
BSS/1500gmt
Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)
ministerial meeting on poverty alleviation will be held here on
July 9.
Senior officials of the member countries will meet on July 8
to prepare the ground work for the meeting, official sources said
today.
The issues which are expected to figure prominently at the
meeting include food security, environment and climate change.
The senior officials of member countries are also expected to
discuss the mechanism for exchange of information on best
practices to tackle poverty, achieve millennium development goals
(MDGs) and explore ways and means to develop project based
collaboration among the member countries, the sources said.
BIMSTEC members are Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan,
Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
BSS/1340gmt
Enlistment of expatriates as voters under consideration: Anwarul Iqbal
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)- LGRD and Cooperatives Adviser Muhammad
Anwarul Iqbal today said the expatriates' demand to enlist them
as voters was under consideration of the government.
The election commission, he told a delegation of expatriates,
was working on the matter.
The delegation of expatriates living in the UK and Canada
called on him at his office, an official handout said.
The adviser said the government would discuss various
national issues with expatiates through video conferencing.
The government, he said, formulated municipal, city
corporation and local government commission ordinances.
Appointment of a local government commission to strengthen
local bodies, he said, was under process.
The delegation, led by Muhibur Rahman Muhib, requested the
adviser to ensure investment friendly atmosphere so that the
expatriates could invest in Bangladesh contribute to its
development.
BSS/1350gmt
BSS-07
ACC-HANIF
ACC drives have no link with next elections: Hanif
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)-Director General (DG) of the Anti-
Corruption Commission (ACC) Colonel Hanif Iqbal today ruled out
the notion that the activities of the commission are aimed at
debarring the accused persons contesting the next elections.
"Appropriate authorities will take decision on the matter in
the light of the existing laws. The ACC has no such intention to
convict anybody or prove any allegation to disqualify a person
from taking take part in the elections," he said.
The ACC DG, also the spokesman of the corruption watchdog,
said this during his regular press briefing in ACC conference
room here this afternoon.
He said the main goal of the ACC is to establish the
commission as an independent and neutral body and continue its
crusade against all evil activities considered as 'offense' in
the schedule of the ACC.
The DG said the issue of disqualifying the convicted persons
also came up for discussions during the regime of the past
governments. The decisions taken by those governments in this
regard still exist, he said.
The DG said the commission has been carrying out its anti-
corruption drive under the law and subsequent rules so far
framed. The commission would continue its drive against the
corrupt persons.
He said the ACC has given full concentration to inquiry and
investigation into the corruption allegations and putting up
those before the court of law for their logical conclusion.
"It is unlikely on the part of the commission to give
interpretation or opinion on any decision of the court or the
government," he said adding that 'however there is no scope to
exonerate anybody under the existing legal framework.
Col. Hanif Iqbal said the ACC has approved the chargesheet in
the graft case filed against chairman of Teknaf Pourasabha
Abdur Rahman Bodi with Double Mooring thana in December, 2007.
The commission also served notices on five persons including
Serniyabat Sadik Abdullah, son of Awami League leader Abul Hasnat
Abdullah, asking them to submit their wealth statement to the
commission. Other persons are Mer Hossain, former Deputy Director
of Public Housing Department, M Aslam, a technician of Bakhrabad
Gas System, S M Mosharraf Hossain, appraiser, Customs, Excise and
VAT (appeal), and Anisur Rahman, Finance and Accounts Officer of
Dock Labour Management Board, Chittagong.
The DG said the commission is yet to take any decision to
lodge complaint on the allegation of mismanagement of the fund of
Zia Orphanage as there are some ambiguities in the memo evidences
(ME) submitted by the enquiry officer to the commission.
He said the investigation officer (IO) of the graft case
against Mayor Sadek Hossain Khoka has submitted his report to the
commission, which now remained under process.
BSS/1400gmt
BSS-08
EPZ-INVESTMENT
HK & British Virgin Islands co to invest $3.1m in Ishwardi EPZ
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS) - A company of Hong Kong and British
Virgin Islands will invest US dollar 3.192 million to set up a
sweater manufacturing industry in Ishwardi Export Processing
Zone.
The 100 percent foreign owned company, Rosita Knitwears (Pvt)
Ltd, would employ 2,047 Bangladeshis and 30 foreign nationals,
and produce 1.75 million sweaters annually, a press release said.
An agreement to this effect was signed between the Bangladesh
Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) and Rosita Knitwears in
BEPZA Complex here today.
Member (Engineering) of BEPZA M Farhad Uddin and General
Manager of Rosita Knitwears Che Chit Meng signed the agreement on
behalf of their respective organizations.
Executive Chairman of BEPZA Brig Gen Jamil Ahmed Khan and
other officials of both sides were present on the occasion, said
the release.
BSS/1410gmt
BSS-09
BANGLA-FESTIVAL-NY
3-day Bangla Festival begins June 27 in NY
NEW York, June 16 (BSS) - A three-day `International Bangla
Festival' will begin at Mary Louis Academy in Queens here from
June 27 next.
Eminent writers and cultural personalities from Bangladesh
and West Bengal of India will participate in the festival.
New York based Mukta Dhara Foundation will organize the
Festival, which is expected to be inaugurated by noted writer
Hasan Azizul Huq.
Director of the Foundation Bishwajit Shaha told BSS today
that the main attractions of the Festival are Bangla parade and
book fair. "Various types of traditional masks have already been
brought from Bangladesh to make the parade colourful," he said.
Foreign Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, Youth and
Sports Minister of West Bengal Subhas Charkarbarti, poets Sunil
Ganguly, Belal Chowdhury, Shahid Quadri, Rafiq Azad and Joty
Prokash Dutta, Chairman of ATN Bangla Mahfuzur Rahman and
Managing Director of Channel-I Faridur Reza Sagar are expected to
join the Festival, he said.
Preparations for the festival are at the final stage, Shaha
added.
BSS/1420gmt
BSS-10
BANGLADESH-EU-CLARIFICATION
Foreign office clarifies "European Parliament hearing"
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS) - The foreign ministry today
contradicted a report carried by different newspapers on a
"European Parliament hearing" on Bangladesh's human rights
situation, saying it was not a meeting by any constituent organ
of the European Parliament.
"The (said) meeting was not organised by any constituent
organ of the European Parliament," a statement of the External
Publicity Wing of the foreign office said.
The statement said the meeting was an informal one where main
attendees were Europe-based leaders of a political party and two
members of the European Parliament attended the meeting in their
personal capacity.
Bangladesh Ambassador to the European Union AHM Moniruzzaman
briefed the participants of this "informal meeting" about the
various reform measures undertaken by the caretaker government
and progress on the "roadmap" for holding the general election in
the third week of December this year.
BSS/1430gmt
BSS-11
WATER
CS Karim for integrated strategy to solve water problems
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16(BSS)- Adviser for Water Resources Dr. C. S.
Karim today called for adopting an integrated strategy to resolve
the water problems in Bangladesh to achieve its millennium
development goal.
"If snows in the Himalayas melt it would not only affect
Bangladesh, but all the countries concerned will suffer heavily
on socio- economic realities", the adviser said as the chief
guest at a two-day dialogue on 'Prospect of the Rivers of the
Greater Himalayas- Bangladesh Perspective' at a local hotel.
The dialogue has been arranged jointly by the Water Resources
ministry and International Union for Conservation of Nature
(IUCN) with financial support of the World Bank, said a release
of the water resources ministry.
The adviser said "Our economy is related closely to our
rivers and culture". He said three major tans-boundary rivers
originated from the Himalaya have passed through Bangladesh to
the Bay of Bengal.
"We have to suffer from natural calamities like erosion at
rainy season and floods every year, since we do not have control
over these rivers", he told the dialogue while stressing on
improved relations with the neighbouring countries and developing
common strategies to resolve these problems.
Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Raja Debashish Roy was
the special guest at the function. It was chaired by secretary of
the water resources ministry Mohammad Ayub Mia.
Among others, Prof. Dr. Sajjadur Rashid of Dhaka University,
Mir Sajjad Hossain, member of the joint rivers commission, and
Dr.Ainun Nishat, Bangladesh representative of the International
Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN), spoke on the occasion.
The dialogue began last July in Dubai and would hold a follow
up meeting in Singapore next month.
BSS/1440gmt
BSS-12
ADB-CLIMATE
Reap benefit from climate investment funds: ADB
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)- Bangladesh should be prepared to
bargain its due stake over an emerging climate investment fund
(CIF), well ahead the pool financing starts offing in months for
developing countries vulnerable to climate change, said a senior
ADB official here.
Country Director of Asian Development Bank (ADB) Hua Du said
the government along with its development partners needs to
workout a plan and strategies to ask and convince the fund
mangers for providing adequate support both for mitigation and
adaptation purposes.
"Bangladesh is severely affected by climate change due to its
high reliance on nature, over population and geographic
location," Hua Du told BSS in an interview recently, after
attending last month's climate change workshop in Italy.
"The workshop was organised exclusively for
discussing Bangladesh issues," said the ADB chief, who leaves
Dhaka this month after six years of service in the local
resident mission of the Philippines-based lending agency.
The CIF, divided in two categories, is expected to pool
together five to six billion dollars initially from different
donors, especially from G8 countries, to help developing nations
to pursue cleaner development paths and protect themselves from
the impacts of climate change between now and 2012.
The funds are likely to be launched in the next few months
after the board of the World Bank, the key custodian of the
funds, approves them.
The ADB, African Development Bank, European Bank for
Reconstruction and Development, and the Inter-American
Development Bank are the co-managers of the fund.
These banks will help their client countries to access the
money, which is considered just half the size of the required 10
billion US dollar annually for developing world to absorb
climate change shocks.
"The CIF will be new and additional to the existing aid
commitments for developing countries to address urgent climate
change related challenges," said Hua Du.
She said Bangladesh should focus more onto adaptation fund
from external sources to ease pressure on its limited domestic
resources, along with the mitigation programmes.
She, however, suggested for using local technologies to make
programmes cost effective and encourage indigenous knowledge to
fight the human-induced natural disasters.
BSS/1450gmt
BSS-13
WEATHER LEAD
Rains across the country likely
DHAKA, Bangladesh, June 16 (BSS)- A monsoon depression, roosting in the
north Bay of Bengal near the Bangladesh shore, may cross the
coast tonight, triggering rains across the country, heavy along
coastal areas, met office sources said.
Rains and high winds are expected to wash away the sultry
weather of the past few days, bringing a touch of cool and
pleasant temperature of rainy season tomorrow.
The sources said the depression, carrying high winds and
bundles of clouds, may shore up the monsoon, lying a little idle
since it spread around the country on June 7.
As the depression was approaching the country's coastline to
dump its loads of rains and unleash the winds only Sylhet
recorded the highest 36mm rainfall during 12 hours between 6 am
and 6 pm today. It was followed by 26mm at Rajshahi and 15mm at
Bogra. Scattered rains were reported elsewhere of small amount.
But the met forecast for the next 24 hours beginning at 6 pm
today said light to moderate rains or thundershowers accompanied
by temporary gusty winds are likely at most places over Khulna,
Barisal and Chittagong divisions and at many places over Dhaka,
Rajshahi and Sylhet divisions with moderately heavy to heavy
falls at places over Khulna, Barisal and Chittagong divisions.
The day temperature may fall by 1-3 Celsius over the
country, the forecast added.
The highest maximum temperature in the country today was
36.2 degrees Celsius at Sylhet and the lowest minimum was 24.6C
at Sandwip.
The maximum temperature in Dhaka was 32.6C and minimum 26.5C,
Chittagong maximum 29.6C and minimum 25.4C, Rajshahi maximum
34.1C and minimum 26.8C, Khulna maximum 31C and minimum 27C,
Barisal maximum 30.8C and minimum 26.1C and Sylhet maximum 36.2C
and minimum 26.9C.
Rainfall activity may increase in next two days, the met
outlook for weather for 48 hours said. Little change in weather
is forecast in another five days, the met extended outlook added.
BSS/1500gmt
