Over 200 small Gazipur garment factories declare 3-day break

More than 200 small and subcontracting garment factories in Gazipur declared holidays from Thursday to Saturday, as low gas pressure, combined with the coming weekend, prompted managements to extend the break.

"Mainly the subcontracting factories and the small and medium units have declared a holiday as their work has been affected by the low gas pressure," Mohammad Amzad Hossain, Superintendent of Police of Industrial Police-2 at Gazipur, told The Daily Star in a phone interview.

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With Wednesday's public holiday marking the second anniversary of the July Uprising, and Friday and Saturday being weekly holidays, factory managements opted to shut for three consecutive days rather than reopen today before the weekend.

Large mills and factories, however, will continue to operate at full capacity today, Amzad said.

Mahmud Hasan Khan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said low gas pressure was not the only reason for the closures, calling reports that solely blamed the gas crisis "misleading."

Speaking to The Daily Star over the phone, he said factories have previously announced short holidays during episodes of low gas pressure, and called the current situation not a major problem.

Mohammad Saifuzzaman Bhuiyan, Gazipur operations manager of Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company, said current gas demand in Gazipur is around 550 million cubic feet per day against a supply of only 300 million cubic feet.

“Gas supply is being disrupted in almost all sectors, including industrial, commercial, and residential,” he added.