Govt's failures in power sector worsen energy crisis, says Jamaat
Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar alleges government mismanagement has worsened the power and gas crisis.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami today (13 August) accused the government of failing to manage the power sector, saying prolonged electricity and gas shortages have caused widespread public suffering and disrupted industrial production.
In a statement, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar expressed "deep concern" over the ongoing energy crisis and blamed "government mismanagement, inefficiency, lack of foresight, corruption and politicization" for the worsening situation.
Porwar said widespread load shedding began on 9 August, with power shortfalls reaching 3,671 megawatts that day, 3,757MW on 10 August, 3,465MW on 11 August and 3,382MW on 12 August.
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He claimed the country had faced an average electricity deficit of around 3,500MW over the past several days, causing hardship for both ordinary people and the industrial sector.
The Jamaat leader also said gas supply stood at 2.03 billion cubic feet against a demand of 3.8 billion cubic feet on 12 August.
He claimed public anger was mounting as the energy crisis deepened.
He said the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Association had already written to police headquarters seeking tighter security at 80 rural electricity cooperatives, "a reflection of the government's failure to manage the power sector."
Porwar further claimed that the lack of long-term planning had disrupted production in factories, while electricity and gas shortages were affecting cooking and other daily household activities as well as students' studies, making civic life increasingly difficult.
To address the crisis, he urged the government to increase gas supply, curb industrial gas theft, reduce leakages and system losses, adopt the necessary policies for energy conversion, and ease the import of related equipment.
He also urged measures to prevent fuel smuggling, facilitate crude oil imports through public or private initiatives, improve the skills of personnel involved in power generation and distribution, and step up domestic gas exploration.
Emphasising the need for greater exploration, Porwar called for the use of new technologies to manage onshore gas reservoirs and the engagement of foreign partners capable of drilling new exploration and development wells.
He warned that if the government failed to meet people's basic daily needs, it would have to bear responsibility for any situation that might arise.
