26 March, our Independence Day, is the biggest state festival. The day is celebrated every year in the country with great enthusiasm and fervour. It is a national holiday. All offices, educational institutions, shops and factories remain closed on this day. The day begins with a 31 gun salute.

Early in the morning the President and the Prime Minister on behalf of the nation place floral wreaths at the National Mausoleum at Savar. Then other leaders, political parties, diplomats, social and cultural organisations, educational institution and freedom fighters pay homage to the martyrs. People from all walks of life also go there in rallies and processions. There are many cultural programmes throughout the day highlighting the heroic struggle and sacrifice in 1971.

In Bangabandhu National Stadium, school children, scouts and girl guides take part in various displays to entertain thousands of spectators. Educational institutions also organise their individual programmes. Sports meets and tournaments are also organised on the day including the exciting boat race in the river Buriganga.

In the evening, all major public buildings are illuminated with colourful lights. Bangla Academy, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy and other socio-cultural organisations hold cultural functions. Similar functions are also arranged in other places in the country.

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The internet technology has helped design a large number of websites to facilitate social relations among people around the world. These are known as social networking services or social networks or social media. At present, Facebook is the most popular social media site. Google+, Twitter, Linkedin etc. are other frequently used social services. Social network services are web-based and hence, provide ways for the users to interact through the Internet.-These services make it possible to connect people sharing interests and activities across the borders and thus have made the users feel that they really live in a global village.

Why are social networks expanding so fast? The answer is simple. Most of the social services are cost-free. You can make use of them free, paying a very little to your Internet service provider. Secondly, you can make your personal profile public before the entire online community. It is like presenting yourself before the entire world. You can also look into other people's profile if you are interested. It is simple and easy. Thirdly, social networks allow users to upload pictures, multimedia contents and modify the profile. Some services like Facebook allow users to update their profiles. Fourthly, network allow users to post blog entries. User profiles have a section dedicated to comments from friends and other users. Finally there are privacy protection measures too. A user himself or herself decides over the number of visitors/viewers, and what information should be shared with others.

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May Day or International Workers' Day is observed on May 1 all over the world today to commemorate the historical struggle and sacrifices of the working people to establish an eight-hour workday. It is a public holiday in almost all the countries of the world.

Since the Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries in Europe and the US, the workers in mills and factories had been working a long shift, fourteen or even more hours a day.

On May 1st in 1886, inspired by the trade unions, half of the workers at the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company in Chicago went on strike demanding an eight-hour workday.) Two days later, a workers' rally was held near the McCormick Harvester Machine Company and about 6000 workers joined it. The rally was addressed by the labour leaders. They urged the workers to stand together, to go on with their struggle and not to give in to their bosses. At one point of the rally, some strike breakers started leaving the meeting place. The strikers went down the street to bring them back. Suddenly, about 200 policemen attacked them with clubs and revolvers. One striker was killed instantly, five or six others were seriously wounded and many others were injured. The events of May 1, 1886 are a reminder that workers will continue to be exploited until they stand up and speak out to gain better working conditions, better pay and better lives.

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Meherjan lives in a slum on the Sirajgonj Town Protection Embankment. The whispering wind from the river Jamuna makes the fire unsteady. The dancing flames remind Meherjan of the turmoil in her life.

Not long ago Meherjan had everything a family, arable land and cattle. The erosion of the Jamuna gradually consumed all her land property. It finally clamied her only shelter during the last monsoon. It took the river only a day to devour Meher's house, trees, vegetable garden and the bamboo bush. She had a happy family once. Over the years, she lost her husband and her family to diseases that cruel hunger and poverty brought to the family. Now, she is the only one left to live on with the loss and pain. The greedy Jamuna has shattered her dreams and happiness.

There are thousand others waiting to share the same fate like Meherjan. Bangladesh is a land of rivers, some of whose banks overflow or erode during monsoon. Erosion is a harsh reality for the people living along the river banks. During each monsoon many more villages are threatened by the mighty rivers like the Jamuna, the Padma and the Meghna. It is estimated that river erosion makes at least 100,000 people homeless every year in Bangladesh. Infact, river erosion is one of the main dangers caused by climate change. If we can't take prompt actions to adapt to climate change, there will be thousands of more Meherjans in our towns and villages every year.

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