Bangladesh in retrospect

The most significant event for Bangladesh in the last century has been its birth as an independent nation. Prior to that, it experienced British colonial rule until 1947, followed by an oppressive existence as East Pakistan from 1947 to 1971.

The life of our people has often been shaped by tragedy. Floods have devastated our land and tidal waves from the sea have swept away thousands of lives. Poverty has been an ever-present specter. As a result, nearly seventy percent of the population suffer from carious degrees of malnutrition. Rapid population growth has added to this problem. Although the growth rate has slowed down to some extent, the population has almost doubled since independence.

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Television Advertisements

     Television channels present all kinds of programmers. Viewers choose their favorite ones. But the programmers are often interrupted by advertisements.

These are sponsored by manufacturers of goods. They produce all kinds of things. These things have to be sold. The more goods they sell, the more profit they make. But they face competitions from other manufacturers of the same goods. So in order to attract customers, they advertise their products on television. This is how they tempt the buyers. They understand human psychology. If we find goods advertised on television day after day, it becomes difficult for us to resist the temptation. Even if we do not need the things, constant advertisements induce us to buy them.

Advertisement cause annoyance when they interrupt a favorite programmer. Sometimes they go on for a long time and we feel like switching off the set. But we do not do that because we think this one might be the last. When the series of advertisements ends, we feel relived. However, there are advertisements which are presented in an attractive manner. They are fascinating. They are a pleasure to watch.

One bad aspect of the advertisements is that they tend to increase people’s demand for goods whether they need them or not. Demand for goods puts a strain on our purses. We may not have money to buy them. But somehow or other we try to manage the money. Sometimes this forces people to earn money through dishonest means. People are also induced to buy luxury items---- items they do not really need. The whole society becomes preoccupied with material things.

However, nothing can prevent the advertisers from putting advertisement from putting advertisements on television. The public will have to decide between essential goods and inessential ones. This is how we can avoid waste. There is a saying: “waste not, want not”

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