Editorial
Power crisis approaching the abyss?
Govt has to come up with solution urgently
THE frequency and duration of power outages appear to be breaking all previous records. Whereas it used to be of one-hour duration it has now aggravated into between five and six hours. And, to top it off, the frequency of outages has accentuated with too many bursts of power snapping shut over a 24-hour cycle. If this is the situation in the capital city, what it is like in the rural areas can be easily conjured up. The ensnaring crisis is rooted in the deficit of gas supply to power plants and a growing mismatch between the demand for and the generation of power. The government sounds resigned to the unmanageability of the crisis. If that's so, then how confidence can be instilled in the people's mind about a possible way out of the crisis sooner rather than later?
The people's heightened hardship in this hot and humid weather is terribly palpable with darkness engulfing them after dusk, pumped water supply snapped and no electrical fans operating on which majority of the people rely for relief. The adverse effect on productivity, education, economic transactions, link with the outside world and office work in general is incalculable.
With public frustrations surging over the issue, protesters have attacked power offices and blocked roads in Basail upazila in Tangail and Matlab upazila in Chandpur. Also reports from Chandpur and Kishoreganj districts spoke of besieging and vandalising Palli Bidyut offices. The government need to take note of the incidents as a precursor of wider public agitation over the deteriorating power situation. The decision-makers must approach the situation with greater circumspection and application, coming out with satisfactory power management and generation options that are doable and translatable into action on the ground.
That ad hoc measures, palliatives and experiments interspersed with commitments going into the future cannot do has been proven beyond doubt. Notwithstanding government's several steps including day light saving time initiative, reduction of business hours for shopping malls, introduction of a zoning system, staggering weekly day-offs for shops and other commercial establishments, the power crisis remains defiant of any easing off. So, it is all down to concrete action now.
The prime minister has directed all concerned for simplification of procedures for setting up power plants. The people expect results now.
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