Bands perform at famous Dhaka square to aid Bangladesh's deluge-hit people

Dhaka: Hundreds of people gathered to listen to local bands and musicians perform on one platform here at a famous open memorial site near Dhaka University -- one of the hotbeds of the anti-government protests -- in aid of people affected by floods in Bangladesh.

Monsoon rainfall-triggered floods in deltaic Bangladesh and upstream Indian regions killed at least 13 people and marooned nearly three million others in this country, posing a huge administrative challenge to the newly installed interim government amid a political transition.

The affected districts include Comilla, Noakhali and Feni.

The gathering took place on Friday night at Raju Memorial -- situated in a traffic roundabout -- whose mounted sculpture has also become one of the defining images of the recent anti-government protests that eventually brought down the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5.

The site was also one of the hotbeds of the anti-government protests.

While the sculpture was lit up in colourful hues, two giant hoardings bearing slogans in Bengali flanked the sculpture, forming an artistic backdrop.

Hundreds of people gathered to watch the performance as the emcee announced from the stage that the concert was in aid of people affected by the floods, urging people to contribute money, medicine, clothes and whatever else they could to help those affected.

The spectators comprised mostly youth, including students of Dhaka University. Some waved the national flag of Bangladesh, and many others tried to capture the moments on their mobile phone cameras.

A band also played Bangla rap songs with lyrics recalling the anti-government protests that ousted the previous government.

A section of the crowd sat on the road in front of the memorial, while others stood around a makeshift wooden barricade, a large number of them sporting a headband themed on the Bangladesh national flag that became a defining symbol of the anti-government resistance that ousted former prime minister Hasina, who fled to India on August 5.

The songs -- in Bengali -- performed by musicians also included numbers with powerful lyrics that celebrated the anti-government protests and the struggle, some of which have already become anthems of resistance, as the crowd sang along.

"This concert we are taking part in today is for our brothers and sisters out there who are affected by the floods. Please donate with an open heart," appealed a musician on stage before starting the performance with his band that regaled the audience.

Bangladesh is crisscrossed by more than 200 rivers, 54 of them being transboundary rivers with upper riparian India in four major basins.

A depression (a system that brings in copious rainfall) in the Bay of Bengal has led to the current deluge with rivers in two basins – the north-eastern Meghna Basin and south-western Chattrogram Hills Basin –- flowing above the danger mark.

Apart from the torrential rains, the overflowing rivers, El Nino, and climate change phenomenon were the factors responsible for widespread flooding in the country, weather experts said on Friday.

The public square faces the TSC (Teacher Student Centre) of the university and has the famous 'Anti-Terrorism Raju Memorial Sculpture' opened in 1997 where many students gather these days to raise voices for their two principal demands --"no political interference in University and Dhaka University Students Union's election be held as soon as possible".