Mohammad Rafiqul Islam

Electricity crisis has become a chronic disease in our country since the mid-nineties due to increase in consumption of electricity in various sectors with the increase of population. Despite the time-demanding necessity of meeting the increasing trend in electricity consumption, no government has so far taken any fruitful decision in resolving this national crisis. We have gone through a lot of policies and procedures of implementation so far, but focus on the actual situation seemed to be absent. Those involved have merely shown the crisis for display, not decision.

Bangladesh is under a severe power crisis with nearly 1500 MW of electricity falling short. The electricity requirement may reach 9840 MW by the year 2012. Imagine how terrible the situation may be for the nation if we do not address the crisis on a priority basis. It is reassuring that the present government has taken the issue as a topmost priority, placing the crisis on the list for Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Programme that can attract the attention of local and foreign investors.

A recent research reveals that the on-going electricity crisis is cutting down 10%-12% of industrial growth and 9% of agricultural growth, that leads to the cumulative bleeding of the fragile economy of Bangladesh. In the context of our neighbouring countries, we see that India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are also under an electricity crisis. But their attention to this issue is very positive and favouring the interest of the people on the ground of national interest, not on that of political aspects. Continuous effort is being given there to overcome the situation.

We all are, more or less conscious about how electricity shortage is hindering the growth of our economy. I do not think the matter needs to be further elaborated. As a field level worker I just want to address some practical aspects directly related to the ongoing power crisis. Export-oriented industries are poised to lose the most from the threat. The market for our goods at the international level has been facing severe competition. Yet we are surviving in the international market with the low cost of our labour forces. If the increasing cost stemming from the power crisis adds to that, the cost effectiveness of our merchandise may deteriorate in the near future resulting in loss of market share at the international level. If so, export may decrease, unemployment rate may increase and the backward linkage industry will face a complete disastrous situation. Electricity crisis is seriously hampering irrigation, which is important to the rural economy and that may cause lower productivity. This decreasing trend in rural productivity may have a negative impact on the Internal Rates of Return of the nation.

We need some proactive and prompt decision to address the power crisis in the greater context of our very survival in the global competitive market. A National Committee comprising all levels of the society have to start working to resolve the crisis by 2015. The committee should start a fund-hunting drive at home and abroad to increase the inflow investment in this sector. Bangladesh should take financial support from the international aid agencies in building new power plants. Electricity can be imported from Myanmar at a reasonable cost if negotiations for that are started seriously and help is taken, if necessary, from China. Myanmar is maintaining warm relations with China since long and we are also maintaining the same relations with the government of China. On the basis of the friendly relations between Bangladesh, Myanmar and China, we certainly can move forward. Some of our industrial conglomerates generate power within their factory with their own resources. In this connection, Government should encourage their effort by offering low cost financial facilities in establishing small scale electricity generating plants that contribute to the national flow of electricity. System Loss is a very common and familiar word related to the electricity crisis in Bangladesh. What is system loss, who is behind it, and why does system loss happen? Government should uproot the evil and book the criminals behind the activities that make it possible.

In our context, the electricity issue has become more a political than a national one. A section of our politicians tried to deceive the general people by supplying electric poles and cables only but no electricity. We do not want to see such fraud any more. We want to see the problem tackled as a most urgent one by strategic level policy makers who have the ability to go beyond politics.



(Mohammad Rafiqul Islam is a banker)