40 madrasa students receive English language scholarships

"With the expansion of the European Union and the 'shrinking globe' phenomenon, English has become the language of trade and commerce," he said while addressing a group of 40 madrassa students at a scholarship award ceremony in the city.

The students received English language scholarships from the US government.

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Apart from economic benefits, the most important reason for learning English is to understand each other better, Thomas said.

"I'm sure you know that the real United States is very different from what you might read in the newspapers or see on television," he added.

Twenty students from Madinatul Ulum Women's Kamil Madrassa and 20 other students from Tanjimul Ummah Cadet Madrassa will learn English under the ACCESS English language project, a new programme of the US Department of State.

Administered by the American Centre of the US Embassy in Dhaka, the scholarship would cover costs for tuition, books, materials and transportation for these students.