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Electricity crisis, tide, sun, wind and our own intellect
BM research, 26 March, 2009/ Revision on 20 October 2010:
There is no doubt that we have lost our mental strength in question to the national interest of the country rather than our own narrow interest. In order to safeguard the national interest of the country we should have adequate intellect strength and patriotism so that we may build up a prosperous and happy Bangladesh . Unfortunately, we have sold out our moral values just for grabbing bless of the aid agency and to get facility from the vested investors where we often able to demonstrate to our ability to select the right alternative which might be the best option for the development of the country.
A new Government has been formed nearly two years ago; unfortunately law and order in the educational institutions neither remained stable nor any peaceful secured environment in the whole sectors of Bangladesh. Recklessness and irresponsibility have so nakedly been demonstrated that the future of the country is supposed to be in the dark trench and we should be really worried about that.
No matter what the reason, we have witnessed such carnage in our disciplined forces in Pilkhana which has ultimately challenged the security of the country and for this the Government may never discharge the burden of responsibility since a vigorous security failure has been made successfully which eventually made India a ground to offer to us to send peace keeping force in Bangladesh as like as Maldives, Sri Lanka, Sikkim and thus ‘Pilkhana' is a dark spot of the history of Bangladesh.
Now I shall concentrate to one of the gravest problem in Bangladesh : electricity crisis. Apart from rest of the country, from the observation, at least, in my residing area Pallabi police station where we are remained in the darkness nearly 6-9 hours a day-night. Consequently neither we may pay attention to our economic activities nor can we be cooled from the bizarre warm. Since we do not get any dole money from the country, in the one hand, we are deprived of continuing income generated activities, the ultimate result is to face economic crisis. For demanding electricity a riot was broke out in my area at Palalbi in BNP lead four-party regime few years back, after the riot we were supplied electricity regularly which inspires me to conclude that : Are we being bound to do another type of anarchy in the country so that peacekeeping force may arrive. After 1/11 we saw that task force monitored the central control room of the national greed and the situation was bit improved. Afterwards when all the activities of the taskforce was stopped by whisper of the hiring British parliamentarians and so called aid agencies, situation started to be moved in the same direction. Moreover, a broker class made a hue and cry that the ‘all are frightened' (Sobai Ekhon Sonkito). If small numbers of criminals are frightened for strict monitoring, then what shall be the problem to the rest of the common peoples like us? This was the beginning of the grievous derailment to make blunt the public service in the most recent years. While ‘no matter what the cow is red or black, the question is whether the cow may give milk.' ultimately we have started to be achieved in such a service that we are started to be lived like ‘a beast!'.
Last year we advised to the GOB to introduce renewable energy and also advised to recover the dues from the subscribers of the electricity so that they may upgrade the standard of service. In addition, we protested to the prescription of World Bank, Asian Bank, IMF to hike the electricity bill. But the same vested policy makers did not pay a heed and could not depend on their own mental strengths. At that time, at time of the preparation of the comment, we simply thought that if electricity cost is remained less, the domestic production cost shall be lower and we may compete to and since the utility bills of the household will be down fallen, the standard of the people might be rocketed. This simple assumption was articulated just reading the data from ‘Bangladesh Economic Survey -2005', published from Planning Commission that I bought from Paltan book shops, without being interfere by any interest group.
Since the electricity has not been obtained and the pot of public fury is melting the issue has been brought into the table of debate.
Unfortunately new GOB has not shown any thing rapid and charismatic solution which may notify that the problem has been eliminated. Many forums have arranged seminars to deliver their suggestion to GOB, but at least Dhaka . a vibrant economic zone, has not been lit without any pause.
We know that when Bangladesh Awami League came in to power after 1995, they firstly raised proposal to the people that in order to pacify the electricity problem, electricity had to be imported from India (the same ambition is echoed by Shamsul Haq Tuku, the Poti--Minister of Electricity) (See the paper cutting above),but the patriotic force foiled their vested plan. Afterwards, when the newly Government came to power, a new prince along with his boil rice seller friend in Gulistan and fifth column in the administration started to run Generators business, so the disease turned into another direction and am jonota remained in the same darkness. The newly power stations those have been installed in the last BNP lead 4 party regime, ought to be come into operation in 2008. But we are not able to know why that target has not been achieved or if they are complete is there any policy has been undertaken so that we may be bound to say that ‘Bring electricity from India !' The nation has the right to know the status of the heinous plots.
The controversy regarding the supply of gas in the electricity producing plant has come in to open day light. There are two contradictory information have been known to us. First, gas is diverted to electricity producing plant instead of Fertilizer Company. Second, from a leftist seminar that gas was not supplied to the power plant as per the direction of the foreign countries. In such a situation, we must remind to the GOB that we need milk, we should not know about the color of cow. There should be two term policy: short term policy and long term policy. Since most of the power plants are driven by gas, they should not cut the supply of gas since peoples are suffering from electricity disorder, they should supply gas for the production of electricity and within one or two years GOB must concentrate to building renewable power plant such as hydro-electricity project. The vested interest group was never attentive to upgrade the production of Kaptai – Hydro electricity project. If barge mounted electricity plant may be installed at khalishpur in Khulna , then why shall not be installed such hydro electricity project may be installed on the Meghna river or different rivers in the country. Sun is another asset of the country that we can use to generate electricity. In addition, we have a long costal region where wind is asset that is also usable to generate electricity. In this regard, we must notify to the renewable energy research centre of Dhaka University that they should be active and the lazy brokers who have been working and sucking money from there for a long should resigned from their inactiveness.
All we know that the reserve of gas may remain for only 50 years in Bangladesh . After that, how can be obtained gas as raw materials for the usage of these sophisticated power plants? Gas or coal may be supplied to the household and other industrial usage for instance steel industry as most of the households of the country burn wood. If we avoid such renewable and independent source, it may be evident that our policy is totally targeted to make our energy sector dependent on India .
Lastly, since we have set ourselves free from Pindi we must not go back to Delhi unnecessarily.
