61.
MUSINGS FROM BANGLADESH
Between
October 10–17, 2015, I was in
Bangladesh. The longest sojourn so far
in my 3 years of association with the PRAN-RFL group, one of the largest and
highly respected business houses in Bangladesh.
The trip was to review performance of nearly 6 ETP’s already installed
by us for our Associate and to inspect ongoing construction and commissioning
of 3 more ETP’s at different factories and locations across the country. And to visit the site of a proposed ETP for a
new milk collection and chilling centre, and which in a few years will be
converted to a full fledged Dairy.
A trip which took me
from Dhaka to Natore – Shazadpur ( Rabindranath Tagore is revered here) – Dhaka – Habigonj – Palash – Ghorasal –
Kaligonj - Dhaka
A hectic schedule
which culminated on a Friday afternoon with a presentation to over 30 officers
of the PRAN –RFL group directly/ indirectly connected with the ETP’s, gathered
together from the various factories and the Head office. This final meeting was at the Mymensingh Agro Ltd. Conference room in
the RFL Industrial Park ( RIP) at Kaligonj right on the bank of the Shitolakkha
river.
Here are some
snippets of information, musings if you like about the wonderful city of Dhaka
and our neighbor – Bangladesh. These were earlier posted serially on facebook
during my stay in Bangladesh
SWEET
LASSI
Had by far the best, most delicious sweet lassi
at The Aristocrat Restaurant on National Highway N4 to Natore, near the iconic
4.8 Km long Bangabandhu Sethu bridge. Pure Mishti Dhoi whipped up with extra
cream, a hint of Bashundhi, served in a tall glass, cold and thick. Very thick.
So thick you could float a dollar coin on it ( to borrow a phrase from Louis
L'amour).
SCRAPED, DENTED AND BASHED UP
Yet to see a Rickshaw, car, bus or truck that
has not been scratched, scraped, dented, bashed up or otherwise seriously
abused. Police and army vehicles are the only exceptions. Not surprised.
TRUCKS AND BUSES
An overwhelming majority of trucks in BD are
Tata, Eicher, Ashok Leyland in that order. All the buses are Hino from Japan.
What makes trucks from India competitive but not the buses ?
Got the answer from Vivek Annaswamy, My uncle who retired from
Tata Motors as Chief Executive from after decades of service in that company at
various locations and in various functions :
“ Comfort level. Here ( In India) we make Buses from Truck chassis. Order of the
day are Low floor Monocoque buses “
CHEESE AND PEPPERONI PIZZA
Lunch at Pizza hut in Dhaka today. Pepperoni
and cheese : All beef, no Pork. And in India the same Pizza comes with pork -
No beef. Would love to let loose our worthy politicians on this one.
GREASED LIGHTNING ?
If you finish your commute in Dhaka at an
average speed of 5 Kmph, you have zipped thru the city. Compare this with the
greased lightning speed in Bangalore of 8 Kmph !
DEMOGRAPHY
Some
interesting statistics from BD :
:
- 87 % of the Nationals are Muslim- 12 % of the Nationals are Hindu- 1 % of the Nationals are Buddhist- 0.5 % of the Nationals are Christian- 100 % of Bus drivers are Insane
- 87 % of the Nationals are Muslim- 12 % of the Nationals are Hindu- 1 % of the Nationals are Buddhist- 0.5 % of the Nationals are Christian- 100 % of Bus drivers are Insane
To which my good friend Devinder Singh from
Frankfurt observed : 87+12+1+0.5 = 100.5% !!!
And my Riposte :
May be this is the reason they say BD is overpopulated ?
SUNSET ON NATIONAL
HIGHWAY N2
We left Habigonj in
the far North East of Bangladesh late in the evening at 5.30 PM. The sun sets early in these parts. With the
Sun calling it a day, emerald green paddy fields on either side of the Highway
fade to grey in the distance as a thin gossamer mist hangs over them gleefully
proclaiming that every sun has to set.
SPEEDBOATING ON THE SHITALOKKHA RIVER
New experience today. Factory hopping from Pran Industrial Park
(PIP) to Pran - AMCL factory to RFL Industrial Park (RIP) by speedboat on the
Shitalokkha River. All on account of a blocked road connecting the factories.
Mercifully no traffic jams on the river.
And to beat the afternoon heat, travelled standing to catch the onrush
of heady river air.
EVERYONE ON EMERGENCY DUTY
Half the trucks and minivans plying on arterial
roads, streets, lanes and bylanes of Dhaka carry a placard “ On Emergency
Export Duty “. There are ululating
ambulances and police vehicles. A myriad cycle rickshaws darting, dodging,
weaving and squeezing their way from lane to lane. Pedestrians crossing wide boulevards chock a
block with traffic seeking safe passage with upraised palms. And the private vehicles which although do
not carry any placards, are for all intents and purposes “On Emergency Personal
duty”. Here Nobody gives way to anyone
or anything. Refreshing to see no VVIP
culture here. Would love to plonk our
own Chandrababu Naidu and Chandrasekhar Rao in Dhaka traffic.
A BEEHIVE OF ACTIVITY
Every time I visit the factories of the PRAN –
RFL group, may be after every 6 months or so, It never fails to amaze me the
changes I see in these units. Old gives
way to new, new constructions everywhere, technology upgradation, modernization
of machinery, new products, backward and forward integration and constant
expansion. Never seen anything coming close to this kind of frenetic activity
even in designated industrial Areas in India : Just the scale of it is mind
boggling.
WELL DONE PRAN – RFL
From the time they paid a hefty fine to the
Bangladesh Department of Environment in early 2002 for polluting the
Shitolakkha river, PRAN group has made tremendous strides in its environmental
control activities. All the factories
along the river now have scientifically designed ETP’s running well, as in
their other factories in Bangladesh.
There is a high level of awareness which is now widespread in the group
and its officers about their environmental responsibility, and a good working
knowledge of the treatment processes in ETP’s.
A remarkable achievement in such a short period of time. It took almost a couple of decades I reckon
for a similar transformation to happen in India.
Dr.
Ananth S Kodavasal October
18, 2015
