<i>Routine power outage makes life miserable</i>
Routine power outage has made life miserable for the people in the port city nowadays.
Besides, a large number of consumers of Power Development Board (PDB), Southern Distribution Zone, in Chittagong have alleged 'discrimination' in the supply of power in their respective areas.
They said, “While frequent incident of power outage has made life miserable in these days in the port city, the discrimination by the PDB in the distribution of power or enforcing loadshedding to vast city areas is worsening the situation at the cost of our sufferings.”
They said the PDB used to favour some so-called 'posh' residential areas and supplies power to them more than other areas that are densely populated and under-developed.
PDB officials, however, denied such allegations and said they always try to maintain an evenness or balance while supplying power or going for loadshedding in different areas of the city despite poor generation of power since the commencement of this summer.
People living at Bakalia, Chawk Bazar, Kapashgola, Badurtala, Sholoshahar, Bohaddarhat, Anderkilla, Dewan Bazar, Muradpur, Sholok Bohar, MM Ali Road, Halishahar, Kattali, Pahartali, Madarbari, Pathantuli, Dewanhat, Oxygen, Kalurghat, Chandgaon, Lalkhan Bazar, Patharghata, Firingee Bazar, Dampara, Kazir Dewri, Nasirabad, Monsurabad and few other areas were feeling most the pinch of the 'discrimination' in loadshedding. On the other hand, residents in the Jalalabad area near Chittagong Cantonment, and posh areas like Panchlaish, Mehdibag, OR Nizam Road, Zakir Hossain Road, Khulshi, Jamal Khan and parts of Agrabad Commercial Area were getting relatively fair amount of power.
"The PDB is not only playing a discriminatory role as far as 'reasonable' or 'even' power supply is concerned but also taxing our patience," said Shahidul Alam, commissioner of West Bakalia Ward of Chittagong City Corporation (CCC).
He said none in the area can say when the power will trip and how long it will persist since there is no specific policy of the PDB about loadshedding.
Chawk Bazar Ward Commissioner Syed Golam Haider Mintu and Vice Chairman of Tea Traders Association of Bangladesh (TTAB) MA Taher expressed similar views about the unpredictable supply of power in their localities by the PDB.
"In comparison to some posh areas, what the PDB is doing with its large number of consumers under Bakalia Sub Division is in fact a stepmotherly attitude," they said.
Abdus Samad, a resident of Halishahar H Block, said he has rented the house in the area three month ago and has since then been experiencing the unpredictable nature of the power supply.
PDB officials attributed the problem to inadequate generation in the plants in Chittagong, frequent mechanical glitch in some of the plants and above all shortage of gas for the situation in the port city.
“For shortage of gas supply, generation at 210 MW-capacity Raozan Power Plant Unit-1, Shikalbaha Thermal Plant and Burge Mounted Plants have been suspended for the last two months since May 9 while four, out of five units, of Kaptai Hydroelectric Plant now generate only 94MW and 210MW Raozan Unit-2 only 90MW of power. On the other hand, we get 200 to 210MW of power from the National Grid,” Md Moniruzzaman, public relations officer of PDB, said.
He said the current average daily loadshedding in Chittagong is around 200MW at night and 50 to 60MW in daytime against the daily demand of over 550MW.
Acting Chief Engineer Shibu Kumar Chowdhury denied any discrimination in the loadshedding or power supply.
Despite limitations, we try our level best to keep the loadshedding as low as possible in the industrial belt in daytime and in the residential areas at night.
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