<i>People at wit's end over power outage</i>
Port city experiences loadshedding 15 to 20 times a day
Frequent power outage with an average daily loadshedding of around 150MW has been wrecking havoc on city life in Chittagong since the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.
Vast areas of the city, especially the densely-populated localities, remained plunged into darkness for six to ten hours in several phases of power outage everyday. The erratic power supply is hampering production in industries, including garments and frozen food sectors.
After second or third day of the Ramadan, large number of city dwellers at Bakalia, Chawk Bazar, Kapashgola, Badurtala, Sholoshahar, Bohaddarhat, Anderkilla, Dewan Bazar, Muradpur, MM Ali Road, Halishahar, Kattali, Pahartali, Madarbari, Pathantuli, Dewanhat, Oxygen and Jalalabad areas are feeling the pinch of the loadshedding to great extent.
Of these areas, the situation at West, East and South Bakalia, Chawk Bazar, Kapashgola, Badurtala and Dewan Bazar under Bakalia Sub-Division of the Power Development Board (PDB) are the worst and power outage pushes the residents to an unbearable state during the last few days.
The areas, the most densely-populated in Chittagong, on an average face loadshedding for eight to ten hours daily. In daytime, supply of power in Bakalia Sub-Division areas trips at least four to six times while blackout transcends the areas for 15 to 20 times from Iftar to Sehri, since the first Ramadan.
"The PDB is not only playing a discriminatory role as far '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 power cut has gone beyond the limit of patience from the second day of Ramadan and the sub-division engineers hardly respond to their complaints.
Syed Golam Haider Mintu, ward commissioner of Chawk Bazar, expressed strong ire over poor and unpredictable supply of power in his localities by the PDB.
"In comparison to other areas in the city, what the PDB is doing with its consumers under Bakalia Sub-Division is in fact an step-motherly attitude," MA Taher, vice-chairman of Tea Traders Association of Bangladesh (TTAB) told The Daily Star on Sunday.
He said power cuts at night especially during Iftar and Sehri have become a routine in Bakalia Sub-Division areas.
Admitting the crisis, Executive Engineer of Bakalia Mintu Ranjan Chowdhury said the sub-division is an 'Under Frequency Zone' in Chittagong due to its density and huge power consumption. He said whenever the PDB requires a scheduled loadshedding the axe used to fall on this sub-division that ultimately worsens the situation here.
"The situation is likely to improve soon as the PDB has lifted the 'Under Frequency Zone' consideration last week.
Total generation of all 11 plants in Chittagong, including five units of Kaptai Hydroelectri Power Project, is supposed to be 766MW if they function to the full capacity. The demand here is 575 to 580 MW in peak hours but for last two weeks Chittagong was getting, more or less, 420 to 430 MW.
Moniruzzaman, public relations officer of the PDB, said the power plants are not able to go to their full capacity for non-availability of sufficient gas supply.
"Two units of 210MW Raozan Power Plant now produce only 220MW against its regular production capacity of 360 MW while one of the units at Shikalbaha Barge-mounted Plant on the south bank of river Karnaphuli is out of order since September 23. These factors alongside inadequate gas supply from Sangu are causing loadshedding of, more or less, 150MW everyday," he said.
The PDB officials, however, said the plants in Chittagong region need immediate and proper overhauling, replacement of some key machineries and expansion of electricity lines to get rid of the situation.
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