Make energy policy pro-people
Speakers tell Ctg roundtable
Speakers at a roundtable yesterday demanded a pro-people policy for the country's energy sector.
They said the peoples' interests were not preferred when making the energy policy since 1996.
The roundtable on "National integrated energy policy (proposed)" was organised by Consumers' Association of Bangladesh (CAB) at a hotel in the port city.
Presenting a keynote paper, Professor Shamsul Alam of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology said the general peoples' ownership over the resources should be established in forming the energy policy.
Engineer Delwar Mazumder, ex-chairman of Institute of Engineers' Bangladesh and member secretary of the national committee to protect oil and gas, said if the energy policy is made pro-people then all the previous anti-people policy would become void.
The country's Power Development Board (PDB) is being destroyed deliberately to hand over the power sector to the private sector, he said.
Awami League lawmaker Nurul Islam, the chief guest, said "we should make budget according to the money we have and we should by no means depend upon the money of the donors."
Helal Uddin, superintendent engineer (distribution) of PDB, east zone, said a power station with 300MW production capacity based on furnace oil will come into operation in Chittagong this year. The power crisis will be solved by 2013, he added.
Professor Emeritus Dr Jamal Nazrul Islam, an eminent scientist, was present as the special guest while CAB central committee member SM Nazir Hossain chaired the meeting.
Manash Nandi, Chittagong unit president of Socialist Party of Bangladesh, Shahinul Islam Khan, chief engineer (distribution) of PDB, south zone, and Journalist M Nasirul Hoque, among others, addressed the meet.
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