C T Online Desk: The gas crisis is seriously affecting industries including the export-oriented apparel and textile ones, and households in Chattogram for a couple of days.
Factory owners said that their production had decreased to 40-50 per cent over the past five days which might cause them to suspend orders.
Leaders of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association blamed the Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Limited for the crisis, but the company officials laid blame on the Petrobangla for the gas supply crunch.
BGMEA vice-president Rakibul Alam Chowdhury told New Age that KGDCL officials did not pay heed to the ongoing gas crisis in the port city.
‘We called the gas distribution company’s managing director to solve the problem but he didn’t attend phone calls from the BGMEA leaders. KGDCL officials are not business-friendly,’ he complained.
‘Export-oriented garment factories are at risk of losing orders from buyers.’
Owner of Madina Garments Mohammad Musa told New Age that he had to suspend production for the past three days due to gas crisis, and later, he turned to cylinder gas to run production which was costly.
Mohammed Abdus Salam, managing director of Asian Apparels, said that they had to pay wages to the workers though they did not work due to gas crisis.
‘There is no gas during working hours at day. We have to appoint workers to work overtime for the sake of production. Our labour cost is going double,’ he explained.
Md Mahbubul Alam, president of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said, ‘We urged the authorities concerned to solve the crisis immediately, but to no avail.’
The gas distribution company officials, however, laid blame on the Petrobangla.
KGDCL general manager (marketing-north) Shafiul Azom Khan told New Age that the crisis occurred due to less supply from the state-owned oil company.
‘There is a demand for some 500 million cubic feet of gas in Chattogram daily. But we get only 280 to 290 cubic feet of gas from the Petrobangla,’ he said.
Petrobangla deputy general manager (public relations) Tariqul Islam Khan narrated that the gas crisis was not only in Chattogram but also everywhere across the country.
‘Our gas demand is more that the supply. The crisis occurred since liquefied natural gas could not be imported smoothly from Qatar and Oman due to dollar crisis,’ he added.
Residents living in Bahaddarhat, Muradpur, Chawkbazar, GEC, Halishahar, Bakalia, Khulshi, Kattali, Patenga, Pahartoli, Chandgaon, Oxygen, Bayezid areas had been facing an acute gas crisis from seven to 12 hours.
They said that the crisis multiplied their sufferings amid high prices of essentials.
People of low-income groups including garment workers and day labour, however, suffered most due to gas crisis.
Garment worker Shahida Jahan, a resident in South Kattali area, told New Age that they were facing gas crisis for the past five days.
‘Several thousand garment and factory workers were living in the area. On Tuesday, most of them went to their work stations without taking food in the morning,’ she said.
Housewife Monowara Begum, a resident in Badurtola area, said that the pressure of gas in her stove turned very low at 7:00am and did not become normal till 3:00pm almost every day in the past five days.
Ahsanul Hoque Badal, a resident in GEC area, said that they were also facing gas crisis for a couple of days.
Alongside gas crisis, power cuts also hit the industries in Chattogram badly for the past couple of months, according to the factory owners.
