Palak pins hope on youths for establishing social values

It is the youths who would have to take the responsibility for establishing a society with better values, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, state minister for information and communication technology, said yesterday. 

The big challenges ahead of the youths are to ensure everyone's safety in future and a society free from arms, drugs and pornography, he told a roundtable at Bangla daily Prothom Alo's office in the capital.

Prothom Alo and United Nations Population Fund jointly organised the programme titled "International Youth Day: We Build an Enriched Future". 

The state minister said in every 12 seconds a new Facebook account is opened in Bangladesh and the total number of its users in the country is over 1.5 crore.

He urged youths to attach more importance to their textbooks, apart from browsing the social networking site alone.

Referring to Bangladesh's teenage fast bowling sensation Mustafizur Rahman, Arif khan Joy, deputy minister for youth and sports, said real talent are often hidden in villages and "we have to dig them out". 

At the programme, Masrafe Bin Mortaza, ODI captain of Bangladesh cricket team, said excessive use of Facebook, and drugs were having a negative impact on some youths.

He said in some cases girls are deprived of their education and urged the parents to send them to school properly.