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Indian Border Security Force soldiers stand guard as Indian officials take measurements for a border fence at the zero point that divides India and Bangladesh in Agartala, the capital of Indian northeastern state of Tripura, February 18, 2006. India is erecting a border fence with Bangladesh in Tripura state to check infiltration and smuggling and the work is to be completed by the year 2007, the officials said.

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Bangladeshis watch Indian officials (not in the frame) take measurements for a border fence at the zero point that divides India and Bangladesh in Agartala, the capital of Indian northeastern state of Tripura, February 18, 2006.

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Bangladeshi women smear each other with color to celebrate the end of winter and the onset of spring, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, Feb.13, 2006. Spring, which has often been described by poets and writers as the king of all seasons, is associated with love and bonding of young hearts.

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Veiled Bangladeshi girls walk with flowers on Valentine's Day in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2006. Valentines Day is being celebrated in this Muslim-majority, traditionally Conservative country.

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In Bangladesh, the world's third most populous Muslim nation after Indonesia and Pakistan, millions of Muslims raised their hands towards Mecca during mass prayers in the capital Dhaka and other towns.

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A Bangladeshi farmer speaks on his mobile phone at Khoksa in Kushtia District, some 180kms west of Dhaka, in March 2005. Bangladesh's leading mobile phone company said it has awarded a 150 million dollar contract to Swedish equipment maker Ericsson to expand its network and services in the South Asian country.

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A Bangladeshi policewoman drags a woman activist of the opposition Awami League during a strike in Dhaka February 15, 2006.

Nearly 50 people were injured in clashes between police and activists in Bangladesh on Wednesday during an anti-government strike, the latest in a long series called by opposition parties.

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Bangladesh police in a busy commercial area of Dhaka baton-charge hundreds of demonstrators who were shouting "Give us power, give us fertilizer" during a day-long strike led by the opposition party.

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A Bangladeshi veiled woman crosses a busy street under a downpour in central Dhaka, in March 2005. Lightning killed at least nine people and injured 30 others in northeastern Bangladesh.

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Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. Nearly 20,000 people protested against cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in the Bangladeshi capital as the government condemned the caricatures as "extremely arrogant" and urged an apology.

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Picture taken in 2004, a Bangladeshi beggar raises his hands to join in Eid al-Fitr prayers as he sits in a street in Dhaka. Beggars in impoverished Bangladesh are to receive interest-free loans from US banking giant Citigroup to help them become self-employed, the bank said in a statement.

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A Bangladeshi boy leads blind beggars across a road in Dhaka February 3, 2006.

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Hindu students of Dhaka university walk in front of an idol of the Goddess Saraswati during Puja in Dhaka February 3, 2006. Saraswati is the goddess of wisdom and knowledge. The Puja is being held all over Muslim majority Bangladesh, especially in the educational institutions. Hindu students seek blessings from the deity for their knowledge and learning.

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A Hindu Bangladeshi student of Dhaka university stands before the Goddess Saraswati during Puja in Dhaka February 3, 2006.

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Hindu Bangladeshi students of Dhaka university worship the Goddess Saraswati during Puja in Dhaka February 3, 2006. Saraswati is the goddess of wisdom and knowledge. The Puja is being held all over Muslim majority Bangladesh, especially in the educational institutions. Hindu students seek blessings from the deity for their knowledge and learning.

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Hindu Bangladeshi students of Dhaka university worship the Goddess Saraswati during Puja in Dhaka February 3, 2006.

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Bangladesh's readymade garment exports grew 11 percent in 2005 following abolition of global textile quotas, defying fears the trade rule changes would crush the sector.

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Police beat and arrest an Urdu speaking stranded Pakistani refugee during a clash near a camp in Mohammadpur, Dhaka February 2, 2006. Hundreds of Pakistani refugees clamouring to be repatriated clashed with police in the Bangladesh capital on Thursday and up to 30 people were injured and 20 detained. The Biharis, an Urdu-speaking Muslim minority originally from the Hindu region of Bihar have been stateless since the days of Bangladesh independence. After the partition of 1947, the Biharis became a part of East Pakistan, but their past support for Western Pakistan caused tension between the Bihari and the newly independent nation of Bangladesh. Bangladesh has refused to provide full citizenship to the Bihari due to their previous support of Western Pakistan while Pakistan, on the other hand, fears the large influx of Biharis into Pakistan could destabilize the region. Bangladesh continues to host approximately 250,000-300,000 Bihari who live in 66 camps in 13 regions across the country. The Bihari face overcrowded living quarters, poor drainage and sanitation systems, inadequate education, and health care facilities. The Bihari continue to remain stateless after more than thirty years of hardship. Little has been done to improve their current conditions and no plausible solution has been reached.

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Urdu speaking Pakistani refugees hurl stones at police during a clash near their camp in Mohammadpur, Dhaka February 2, 2006.

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An Urdu speaking Pakistani refugee woman cries as police arrest her brother during a clash near their camp in Mohammadpur, Dhaka February 2, 2006. Hundreds of Pakistani refugees clamouring to be repatriated clashed with police in the Bangladesh capital on Thursday and up to 30 people were injured and 20 detained. The Biharis, an Urdu-speaking Muslim minority originally from the Hindu region of Bihar have been stateless since the days of Bangladesh independence. After the partition of 1947, the Biharis became a part of East Pakistan, but their past support for Western Pakistan caused tension between the Bihari and the newly independent nation of Bangladesh. Bangladesh has refused to provide full citizenship to the Bihari due to their previous support of Western Pakistan while Pakistan, on the other hand, fears the large influx of Biharis into Pakistan could destabilize the region. Bangladesh continues to host approximately 250,000-300,000 Bihari who live in 66 camps in 13 regions across the country. The Bihari face overcrowded living quarters, poor drainage and sanitation systems, inadequate education, and health care facilities. The Bihari continue to remain stateless after more than thirty years of hardship. Little has been done to improve their current conditions and no plausible solution has been reached.

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Urdu speaking Pakistani refugees hurl stones at police during a clash near their camp in Mohammadpur, Dhaka February 2, 2006.

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Urdu speaking Pakistani refugees hurl stones at police during a clash near their camp in Mohammadpur, Dhaka February 2, 2006. Hundreds of Pakistani refugees clamouring to be repatriated clashed with police in the Bangladesh capital on Thursday and up to 30 people were injured and 20 detained. The Biharis, an Urdu-speaking Muslim minority originally from the Hindu region of Bihar have been stateless since the days of Bangladesh independence. After the partition of 1947, the Biharis became a part of East Pakistan, but their past support for Western Pakistan caused tension between the Bihari and the newly independent nation of Bangladesh. Bangladesh has refused to provide full citizenship to the Bihari due to their previous support of Western Pakistan while Pakistan, on the other hand, fears the large influx of Biharis into Pakistan could destabilize the region. Bangladesh continues to host approximately 250,000-300,000 Bihari who live in 66 camps in 13 regions across the country. The Bihari face overcrowded living quarters, poor drainage and sanitation systems, inadequate education, and health care facilities. The Bihari continue to remain stateless after more than thirty years of hardship. Little has been done to improve their current conditions and no plausible solution has been reached.

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Young men from Bangladesh's main opposition Awami League collect stones to hurl at police during a clash in Dhaka on January 21, 2006. At least 25 people were injured in the running battles between police and the opposition, a day before a planned national-wide strike to press demands for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner M.N.Azia whom they accuse of favouring the government.

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A member of the Bangladesh Communist Party holds a placard during a protest rally in Dhaka January 20, 2006. The rally was held to commemorate the fifth anniversary of people killed in a bomb attack in 2001. The placard reads 'try the deadly bombers'.