[🇧🇩-Land] Military Capability of Bangladesh

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Bangladesh Army makes their own bomb disposal robot.

 

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Congrats Officer Cadet Mohammed Norman Ahmed from Bangladesh for winning the Commandant's Merit Award for overall performance of merit by an international cadet at Royal Military Academy Sand Hurst. Norman has exemplified all the best qualities of a leader.

 

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It is our duty to defend motherland: Army Chief tells seminar

Chief of Army Staff General S M Shafiuddin Ahmed on Thursday said Bangladesh Army is doing everything to contribute to achieving Bangladesh’s foreign policy and helping the country become a Sonar Bangla, as dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. “It is our du

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

It is our duty to defend motherland: Army Chief tells seminar
UNB
Published :
Apr 18, 2024 19:59
Updated :
Apr 18, 2024 19:59

Chief of Army Staff General S M Shafiuddin Ahmed on Thursday said Bangladesh Army is doing everything to contribute to achieving Bangladesh's foreign policy and helping the country become a Sonar Bangla, as dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

"It is our duty to defend our motherland and to maintain the sovereignty of the country, and we remain prepared for that. We are doing everything," he said.

The army chief made the remarks while speaking at a seminar titled "Defence Diplomacy: Strategy for Bangladesh" hosted by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) at its auditorium.

Mentioning Bangabandhu's foreign policy dictum, "Friendship to all, malice towards none", he said they are doing everything to implement this foreign policy

"Diplomacy is nothing but an effort to achieve national interest in any form," said the army chief, putting emphasis on sustained economic growth by maintaining national security.

He mentioned how the army, in aid of civil power, is doing a lot of nation-building activities, disaster management efforts at home and abroad, and doing some internal security duties.

The army chief said wherever there is an opportunity, whether it is told and untold, they take the opportunity and do everything for the benefits of Bangladesh.

Talking about military diplomacy, he said they need to enhance the capability by putting in more resources and budget. "We know how to do it but we should have that capability to do it."

Regarding the Myanmar issue, the army chief said some of the military leaders in Myanmar are facing international sanctions and there is a risk of putting themselves in trouble.

"To make one friend happy, we cannot antagonize another. There are dynamics that we have to look into. Practical connotation has also been taken into consideration. We are doing our best and we are on the right track," he said.

General Shafiuddin said they have indigenously produced some remotely operated vehicles which are good innovations for Bangladesh Army. "Thus, we are saving a lot of foreign currency as earlier we needed to import these equipment."

He said military persons not only learn how to fight a war but also know how to prevent or avoid any war to achieve the national interest. "We are on the right track and we will not be failing in discharging our duties."

At the same time, General Shafiuddin said they never forget the main role of military forces which is to protect the sovereignty of the country and they should be ready in doing that.

He said intention can change overnight but capability does not change overnight. "You are my friend today but what happens if you are not my friend tomorrow? We should be capable of defending our national interest, our motherland but the main foreign policy dictum says every tone for us."

BIISS Chairman Ambassador AFM Gousal Azam Sarker and its Director General Major General Md Abu Bakar Siddique Khan, among others, spoke.

Chief of General Staff, Bangladesh Army Lieutenant General Waker-Uz-Zaman was also present in the seminar.

Dr ASM Ali Ashraf, Professor, Department of International Relations, University of Dhaka, spoke on "Evolving Notion of Defence Diplomacy and its Role in Achieving Foreign Policy Goals"; ASM Tarek Hassan Semul, Research Fellow, BIISS, talked about "Growing Geopolitical Competition: Challenges and Opportunities of Defence Diplomacy for Bangladesh"; Major General (Retd) Main Ullah Chowdhury, former Deputy Force Commander, United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and A/FC, United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), discussed on "Defence Diplomacy in United Nations and Other Overseas Missions: Horizon to Explore" and Air Vice Marshall (Retd) Mahmud Hussain, Distinguished Expert, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Aviation and Aerospace University (BSMRAAU), and former Ambassador, Brunei, made a presentation on "Existing Practices of Defence Diplomacy and Future Directions: The Case of Bangladesh".

There was an open discussion session followed the presentations.

The speakers and discussants, during the open discussion session, noted that defence diplomacy has emerged as an effective diplomatic instrument and mechanism for crisis prevention to further a country's diplomatic ties vis-à-vis promoting its foreign and security policy objectives.

From Bangladesh's perspective, defence diplomacy is regarded as an important mechanism for using armed forces in a non-coercive manner that helps to attain the country's national interests and foreign policy goals, they said.

They also said that participation in the United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping missions - a form of defence diplomacy- is an avenue for Bangladesh to demonstrate its commitment towards global peace and stability as well as enhance its importance and influence worldwide.

The speakers mentioned that the concept and appeal of defence diplomacy are evolving in the diplomatic arena of Bangladesh.

Senior officials from different ministries, high officials from embassies and high commissions, former diplomats, senior civil and military officials, media, academia, researchers, faculties and students from various universities, and representatives from international organisations participated in the seminar and enriched it by presenting their valuable questions, opinions, comments, suggestions, and observations during the open discussion session.​

 

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Why the Army-run Educational Institutions are Reliable

Breaking News, International News & Multimedia

thedailynewnation.com

Why the Army-run Educational Institutions are Reliable
28 Apr 2024, 12:00 am

Lt Col Mohammad Anisuzzaman, PhD, AEC :

Bangladesh Army has been playing a tremendous role in Bangladesh's progress since 1971. Bangladesh Army is not only committed to protect the nation from the external threat but also has taken the responsibility to play a role in different sectors of development.

The education sector is one of them. An army-run educational institution is a brand name in Bangladesh. It is evident that the contribution of the Bangladesh Army in improving education is quite explicit and praiseworthy as well.

Bangladesh Army has been contributing to enlightening the nation by establishing schools, colleges (general, medical and cadet), and universities (general, technical and special), which are directly and indirectly administered by Bangladesh Army and have been running efficiently across the country.

As a result of the leaders' foresight, each Cantonment has adopted a master plan that calls for the establishment of educational institutions as part of better and more efficient educational planning from pre-primary level to graduation level.

Army-run institutions have been successful in forging strong relationships with every level of educational institutions in Bangladesh. Currently, the Bangladesh Army has made significant contributions to the development of education by establishing and managing 62 Cantonment Public Schools and Colleges (both in Bangla and English medium) as well as 01 public university throughout the nation, 12 cadet colleges, 04 engineering universities and institutes, 06 medical colleges, 02 Institutes of Business Administration known as Army IBA, and specialized school (Proyash) located at 10 different locations for children with special needs, which is basically designed for the Neuro-Development disordered children.

Most of the educational institutions administered by Bangladesh Army are at the school and college level and they are dispersed extensively around the nation, particularly inside or close to the Cantonments.

The ability of these schools to admit children of civilians is one of their most appealing features. The key characteristic of these institutions is the dual-medium instruction of the curriculum in Bangla and English.

There are many reasons for which the Army-run educational institutions are reliable in Bangladesh. First of all, in the field of running educational institutions, Bangladesh Army ensures proper monitoring by higher authorities. Generally, the trained Army Officers of Bangladesh Army directly lead these institutions. In this field, The Central Co-ordination Committee is headed by the CGS and the Chief Coordinator of the CCC is a Brigadier General, Director of Education.

Besides, within every six months all Principals of all institutions sit together, convene to get directives, share ideas and information. Its reflection is also seen in their educational institutions. There is a strong chain of command in the field of leading educational institutions.

Secondly, in most cases, each and every educational institution in the Cantonment is directly run by an Army Officer. For ensuring proper management, well-trained Military Officers from different arms and services are posted. The Head of the Institution ensures institutional discipline following the instructions commanded by Bangladesh army. Through his or her military attributes, students are taught discipleship and leadership.

Thirdly, an Army-run educational institution provides the best education amenities, including a standard educational environment, a large playground, a computer lab, a science lab, a library, and an auditorium, as well as sports courts. Here, the students get all types of facilities that they need for their physical and mental health.

For mental health support, generally an academic co-ordinator is recruited at an Army-run institute. He/She always counsels students to help them for their mental support in their crisis moments. Here, an academic co-ordinator plays the roles of a mind-builder.

Fourthly, Bangladesh Army recruits the skilled teachers to teach in their educational institutions. All teachers are trained up through internal training facilities. They are gradually skilled up by periodically training. These teachers help in making sure that the foundation of these students is made stronger so that they can compete with students from across the country. Here, a teacher is like a mentor.

All the teachers are also committed to taking extra care of weak students. They even go for home-visiting to nurture the weak students. Teachers also try their best to lead their students to cope with global advancement.

Besides, the achievements of these institutions are noteworthy. Every year, thousands of students are getting admitted to these institutions. Each year, thousands of students from these institutions take public examinations. These institutions have a very impressive passing rate.

The passing rate is about 100%, and the GPA (Grade Point Average) securing point is very impressive. Along with increasing enrollment, the passing rate and the number of GPA-5 students are also increasing year after year, in addition to pupils achieving high rankings in Bangladeshi public examination results.

If the results of both SSC and HSC are noticed, it is evident that Bangladesh Army-run institutions' results are always praiseworthy. Every year, in every public examination, Army-run institutions take top positions in the country.

Finally, co-curricular activities are important subjects in Army-run institutions. Here, through involving students in different clubs, they are taught culture and inspired to build themselves as ideal citizens. These co-curricular activities are also for making them ready for the competitive world.

To sum up, Bangladesh Army has undoubtedly made a significant contribution to the educational system of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Army-run educational institutions have already earned a reputation for their remarkable success in leading students who consistently achieve outstanding results in public examinations. Such excellence is mainly attributed to rigorous scrutiny of intakes and the good quality of instructional ability.

The institutions are under the direct management and supervision of the Bangladesh Army and are committed to keeping pace with the competitive world and ensuring quality education for the students of Bangladesh.

(The writer is Principal, Jolshiri Cantonment School and College, Rupganj, Narayanganj.)​

 

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RUET students develop bomb-disposal robot for Bangladesh Army

The robot, named Hades-X-ZeroThree, draws inspiration from Greek mythology.

www.thedailystar.net

RUET students develop bomb-disposal robot for Bangladesh Army

The robot can locate and retrieve bombs and traverse diverse terrains, including high and low roads, fields, and mud. Image: Collected from Facebook

A team of students from the Mechatronics Engineering Department of Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET) has developed a remote-controlled bomb disposal robot for the Bangladesh Army. The robot, named Hades-X-ZeroThree, draws inspiration from Greek mythology.

'Hades' is the name of the Greek god of the underworld, while 'X-ZeroThree' signifies the initial development stage of the robot. According to the team, this robot can locate and retrieve bombs and traverse diverse terrains, including high and low roads, fields, and mud. The project, guided by Roknuzzaman Rana, Dean, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Feroze Ali, Chief Assistant Professor, Mechatronics Engineering, was led by Kazi Atif and included Md. Al Tasdeed Ul Haque, Yashsir Arafat and Ariful Islam.

The robot has the capacity to lift and carry objects exceeding three kilograms and can be controlled using radio waves from a distance of one kilometer. It employs a specially designed hand for safe bomb defusal. The integrated wireless cameras and microphones enable real-time video and audio transmission to the operator and it is also equipped with night vision and headlights for both day and night operations.

The team mentions that the construction cost is minimal as the robot has been built domestically. Therefore, compared to commercially available robots with similar features, Hades-X-ZeroThree is significantly cheaper, costing only a fraction of the market price.

The team also faced significant challenges during development, primarily due to time and resource constraints. Limited funding further necessitated resourcefulness, says the team. In order to overcome this hurdle, they manufactured most of the components themselves, from the chassis and robotic arms to the wheels. This required utilising local workshops as the university's machine shop was closed during the Ramadan holidays.

Hades-X-ZeroThree was successfully handed over to the Bangladesh Army on April 19, at the Qadirabad Cantonment in Natore. Army representatives thoroughly evaluated the robot's functionalities and expressed interest in collaborating on future advancements, says the team.​