Factory in Narayanganj being repaired amid labour unrest fears
Businesspeople said gas supply to industrial facilities in Narayanganj had improved somewhat from 15 August but the crisis had intensified again
Rows of fabric lie piled up inside Saikat Textile in Narayanganj's Fatullah area, but no production is taking place as the factory's dyeing operations remain shut due to a gas shortage. Welding and repair work is underway in the factory sheds. A few workers were seen inside, but they had little or no work to do.
An official of the company, speaking to TBS on condition of anonymity yesterday, said the factory had remained closed since the gas crisis began.
"There is fear among the workers of losing their jobs. To prevent labour unrest, the owners are carrying out cleaning and repair work at the factory," he said.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
"The factory is closed because there is no gas. For now, we are doing renovation work inside. We will resume operations once gas becomes available. We are suffering huge losses every day," he added.
The situation is similar at dyeing and textile factories across Fatullah. At Fatullah Dyeing and Calendaring, the usual sound of machinery has been replaced by silence. Apart from security personnel and a few staff responsible for supervising the facility, almost no one was present. Although officials were at the factory, workers had marked their attendance and left. The large machines stood idle.
Tushar, general manager of Fatullah Dyeing and Calendaring, said the factory was completely shut.
"All the dyeing factories around us are in the same situation. Nothing can be done with gas pressure of just 1 or 1.5 PSI. We have kept the entire factory closed," he said.
"Because of the gas crisis, we had been able to operate at full capacity for only five to six hours a day. Now even that has stopped. If this continues, it will be almost impossible to pay workers' wages. The owners will have to subsidise the factory to keep it running," he added.
Businesspeople said gas supply to industrial facilities in Narayanganj had improved somewhat from 15 August but the crisis had intensified again.
A visit to several factories in Fatullah on Wednesday found that facilities connected to 50-PSI gas lines had completely halted production. They were receiving only 1-1.5 PSI of gas.
Factories connected to 150-PSI lines, meanwhile, were managing to operate one or two machines, receiving 6-8 PSI of gas. Even this limited supply was severely disrupting production.
Monir Sardar, GM of Model D Capital Group, said the available gas was barely enough to keep its dyeing section running.
"We are using alternative fuel to keep the factory operational. This is increasing our costs. Even so, we are continuing to operate at full capacity by absorbing the additional expense so that we can deliver products to our buyers," he said.
Nasir Uddin, vice-president of the Bangladesh Knit Dyeing Owners Association, said at least 152 member factories were at risk of closure.
"It is not possible to sustain production by using additional fuel. Many factory owners have already shut their factories," he said.
"The entire dyeing industry is now at risk," he added.
