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Despite topsy-turvy year that ends meekly, BNP’s resolve to topple govt unbroken
The BNP started 2023 much as they had ended 2022, active on the streets and on the march with regular programmes throughout the country, their supporters infused with high hopes of ousting the incumbent Awami League-led government and returning to power after 17 years through a free and fair election, that they maintained could only be held under a neutral administration.
Everything the BNP did all year was aimed at securing this outcome ahead of the country’s 12th parliamentary election, which they hoped to participate in - but not if it was to be held under a government led by Sheikh Hasina. The posturing by some important foreign governments, most notably in Washington, served to put even more wind on the party’s sails towards achieving their objective.
But ultimately the year ended in great dismay for the BNP, with a renewed crackdown on their activities in the last two months leading to almost their entire top leadership either ending up in jail or on the run.
As the party is boycotting the 12 parliamentary polls slated for January 7 following its failure to force the government to accept its demand for a polls-time-neutral administration, political analysts believe it will be very challenging for BNP to stage a comeback in politics and revitalise its rank and file in the coming years.
They also fear that the party is likely to face a serious leadership crisis in the days to come, as around 1500 leaders and activists of the BNP and its associate bodies have already been convicted in different political cases from years ago getting raked up again, while around 26,000 others have landed in jail.
Political analysts think BNP should come up with well-thought-out plans and strategies to continue their anti-government movement peacefully by drumming up more public support alongside overhauling the party.
12th Parliamentary Election: Over 1.34 crore voters in Khulna division to cast ballots
In the upcoming 12th Parliamentary Election, 1,34,46,783 voters across ten districts in the Khulna division are set to cast their ballots for 36 seats.
There are 67,46,491 male, 67,00,205 female voters, as confirmed by Khulna Region Election Officer Md Humayun Kabir.
The division will feature 4,984 polling centers. Out of 322 nomination papers submitted, 228 were accepted, 94 rejected, and 38 candidates withdrew.
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A total of 236 candidates are contesting for the 36 seats. In Khulna district, 19,99,882 voters (10,00,084 male, 9,99,784 female, and 14 transgender) will vote at 793 centers, with 39 candidates vying for six seats.
In Bagerhat, 12,81,134 voters (6,44,086 male, 6,37,040 female, and eight transgender) will participate in electing representatives for four seats from 26 candidates across 4,088 stations.
Satkhira district has 30 candidates for four seats, with 17,46,224 voters (8,76,984 male, 8,69,228 female, and 12 transgender) voting in 602 stations.
In Jashore, 23,39,055 voters (11,76,105 male, 11,62,953 female, and 15 transgender) will cast votes for six seats in 825 booths.
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Narail district has 6,41,132 voters (3,21,000 male, 3,20,129 female, and three transgender) voting at 257 centers for two seats, contested by 14 candidates.
Meherpur, with two seats, has 5,55,966 voters (2,77,049 male, 2,78,915 female, and two transgender) and 13 candidates, voting in 207 stations.
Jhenaidah's 15,01,480 voters (7,54,670 male, 7,46,798 female, and 12 transgender) will select from 26 candidates for four seats in 585 stations.
Kushtia district, with 16,43,912 voters (8,22,516 male, 8,21,388 female, and eight transgender), has 31 candidates for four seats, voting in 578 centers.
Chuadanga has 9,50,078 voters (4,75,792 male, 4,74,278 female, and eight transgender) voting in 354 centers for two seats from 15 candidates.
Magura's 7,87,920 voters (3,98,205 male, 3,89,710 female, and five transgender) will vote for two seats in 295 centers, contested by ten candidates.
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To ensure a free, fair, and neutral election, ten returning officers, 71 assistant returning officers, 4,984 presiding officers, 30,253 assistant presiding officers, and 60,506 polling agents will be on duty.
The election, scheduled for January 7, 2024, was announced by Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal on November 15, 2023. The nomination deadline was November 30, with scrutiny from December 1-4 and withdrawal by December 17.
The year 2023 brings laurels for Bangladesh despite concern over fair polls
With “successes” in its basket in the outgoing year 2023, Bangladesh looks forward to a free and fair election next month and will explore ways to deal with whatever challenges it might face in the post-election period, officials said this week.
The government sees Bangladesh’s multiple wins in a number of global forums in the outgoing year as success stories but remains prepared to face any situation if there is any problem during the election that will be watched closely by the international community.
“Why should we think of something negative at the beginning? There is a commitment from the highest level to hold a free and fair election and the Election Commission is working hard. We are all working. We are expecting that there will be a good election,” said Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen.
If there is problem during the polls, he said, they will deal with it at that time. “At this moment, we are not thinking that polls will not be free and fair. Why should we worry in advance?”
Political violence centering national polls mars the outgoing year 2023
Bangladesh prepares to bid farewell to the year 2023 amid a series of political violence centering the upcoming national election that is being boycotted by the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League is going ahead with the January 7 parliamentary vote rejecting the opposition demand for her government to transfer the power to a neutral caretaker administration to make the balloting free and fair.
The political stand-off has spawned intermittent clashes involving police, opposition activists and ruling AL members. The violence, which spiked in the last week of October, left at least several dead and many injured in capital Dhaka and other parts of the country.
The official data on the number of deaths caused by political violence in 2023 couldn't be obtained from the Police headquarters. However, several human rights bodies have gathered data from multiple sources.
According to data compiled by Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), 18 people lost their lives and 3,873 were injured in political violence from January to August this year.
Meanwhile data from Human Rights Support Society (HRSS) show at least 60 people were killed and 6,743 were injured in a total of 689 incidents of political violence in the first nine months of the current year.
The violence—that sparked after October 28—has been marked especially by arson attacks on public vehicles and different establishments during hartal and blockades called by the opposirion.
The situation started aggravating in the last week of October following the BNP’s foiled October 28 grand rally that led to severe violence in the capital and later in different parts of the country.
The central Dhaka, especially Nayapaltan and its surrounding areas turned into a battlefield centring the grand rally after BNP activists and police clashed, leading to the death of a policeman and a ward-level BNP leader. Scores were injured.
Police used teargas and sound bombs to control the violence but that forced BNP to end its grand rally not long after it started.
In protest, BNP called a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal on October 29. Since then BNP and like-minded parties resorted to on-again off-again nationwide blockades and hartals even if the authorities arrested thousands of its leaders and activists on charges of violence.
Among the arrestees has been Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, the party’s general secretary who faces charges of attacks on the chief justice’s residence at Kakrail on October 28.
Sources at the DMP headquarters said a total of 36 cases were filed with different police stations in the capital following the violence centering the October 28 BNP's Nayapaltan grand rally.
The cases named 1544 leaders and activists of BNP and its like-minded parties, including several top leaders of BNP, as the accused. Besides, many unidentified activists have been included in those cases.
On the other hand, a total of 1,813 leaders and activists of various opposition parties, including main opposition BNP have been arrested from the capital in 14 days till November 10 since BNP's October 28 grand rally in the capital’s Naya Paltan, said the police sources.
A total of 131 cases have been filed over violence, sabotage, beating and killing of policemen, vandalism, and arson with different police stations in the capital Dhaka during the period, said the sources wishing anonymity.
BNP, however, claimed that a total of 23,460 leaders and activists have been arrested by law enforcement agencies from across the country till December 27. It said police started arresting its members even about a week before the ill-fated October rally.
As many as 26 people, including one journalist, died and 6573 others were injured during the period, BNP claimed.
Figures from Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) say 64 cases were filed in different police stations of the city in connection with burning 64 buses since October 28 to till November 9.
Besides, 12 people were caught red-handed by the people and the police for alleged sabotage attempts during the period. Some of them climbed into the passenger car or set fire to it from below. During the arrest, petrol, gun powder, cotton, old clothes etc. were seized from them, said police.
A helper of a bus identified as Naeem (22) died and another helper known as Rabiul Islam suffered burn injuries when miscreants torched a bus of Ashim Paribahan at West Deilla Paka Road in Demra of the capital in the early hours of October 29. Both of them were asleep inside the parked bus.
Incidents of arson attacks on vehicles occurred not only in the capital, but also across the country.
From October 28 to December 24 the fire service and civil defence (FSCD) headquarters control room received reports of a total of 289 arson attacks (on several structures and vehicles) by miscreants.
Sources at the FSCD headquarters media cell said a total of 285 vehicles and 15 various types of establishments were damaged across the country, including the capital Dhaka during the time. The vehicles set on fire included 180 buses, 45 trucks, 23 covered vans, 8 motorcycles and 29 other vehicles, including some coaches of trains.
At least four people including a child were killed as arsonists set fire to the Dhaka-bound Mohanganj Express train in the capital's Tejgaon Railway station area on early December 19. The incident occurred, just an hour before the countrywide shutdown called by BNP and likeminded opposition parties on the day.
Besides, unidentified miscreants set fire to a coach of the intercity Upaban Express, which was parked at Sylhet railway station around 9:30pm on November 23 night.
Sylhet Railway Station Manager Nurul Islam said that a fire broke out in the AC chair (B) compartment of an ‘Upaban Express’ train that gutted at least 23 seats of the coach after it was set on fire. After receiving information, firefighters rushed to the spot and doused the blaze in half an hour. However, no one was injured in the incident.
Power, energy sectors are saddled with $5 billion outstanding payment amid dollar crisis: Sources
The power and energy sectors of Bangladesh have been hit by severe cash crunch, especially the US dollars, piling up a huge backlog in payment of their import bills, official sources said this week.
According to official sources, the sectors’ cumulative outstanding bills have now jumped to about $5 billion of which the backlog amount in the power sector is about $4 billion (about Tk 43,093 crore), and the remaining 1 billion is in the energy sector.
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid also admitted the severity of the crisis.
“Actually the crisis is not of local currency. Somehow we can manage it. But the main crisis is of dollar. We’re not getting dollar from Bangladesh Bank as per our needs,” he told UNB this week.
He noted that the power and energy sectors need at least $1 billion a month to meet payment obligations.
"But we’re just getting less than half of that,” he said, adding, “As a result, cumulative outstanding is rising every month”.
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Sources said that the two main state-owned organisations' energy sector – Petrobangla and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporations have to spend huge amounts to import primary fuels like crude and refined petroleum and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from abroad.
Petrobangla also needs to pay foreign gas companies like Chevron to purchase natural gas to meet the local demands. All are paid in foreign currencies.
Similarly, the state-owned Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) has to purchase electricity from independent power producers (IPPs) in dollars.
In addition, it has to import 2500 MW of electricity from India of which 1500 MW is coming from Adani power plant.
Sources familiar with the situation said that under the existing arrangement, the BPDB pays some large IPPs like SS Power, Payra, Rampal and Adani in foreign currency while the other IPPs are paid in local currency but they are allowed to convert the payment in foreign currency as deals’ obligation.
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“Each day we need at least 40 million US dollars from Bangladesh Bank to meet our payment obligation. But we’re getting 5-7 million dollars a day”, a top official of the BPDB told UNB, wishing anonymity as he is not authorised to talk to media.
Officials at the Energy and Mineral Resources Division said the Petrobangla and BPC also need huge foreign currency, particularly the US dollar to continue its petroleum and gas imports and also to buy gas from foreign gas companies.
According to BPC’s Annual Report, the total import of petroleum products was about 6.86 million metric tons and the total expenses of import was US$ 6 billion (equivalent to Tk 62,132.61 crore) in fiscal 2022-23.
For the financial year 2023-24, the BPC planned to import more petroleum products than the previous fiscal, officials said.
Petrobangla has also to import over 5 million metric tons from Qatar Gas, Oman Trading, and the Spot market spending US$ 4.5 billion. It has also to pay US giant Chevron to buy gas from its three gas fields where unpaid bills now stand at $300 million due to backlog in payment.
Nasrul Hamid said his ministry has regularly been negotiating with the Bangladesh Bank to get more dollar supply.
“But the central bank only advises increasing the price of electricity, gas and petroleum which is not frequently possible for a political government”, he said.
He also informed that his ministry was planning to receive a loan from Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) to ease the situation.
“But the central bank is not supporting the idea”, he added.
END/UNB/SH/F
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Khulna Cancer hospital project sees slow progress
Despite the scheduled completion date having lapsed, the Khulna 100-bed full-fledged Cancer Hospital project is still far from completion, with only 21% of the work done over the past two years.
According to the Public Works Department, the cancer hospital was supposed to be completed in June this year, now a proposal has been sent to the ministry to extend the project duration till December 2024 as the work has not been completed within the stipulated time.
The Development Project Proforma (DPP) cost was Tk 175.72 crore and of these, Tk 82.36 crore was allocated for the construction of the 15-storey building with two basement floors.
Under the government’s ‘Establishment of 100-bed Full-fledged Cancer Centre in Government Medical College Hospital in Divisional City’ project’, there will be three—cancer, kidney and heart—units at the hospital.
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Under the project, the 15-storey specialized hospital for treatment of cancer, kidney and heart patients will be established on 23250.46 square feet of land behind the outdoor department of Khulna Medical College and Hospital.
The government signed an agreement with MBPL and SNBPL—two contractor firms on October 31, 2021.
Cancer unit will be established from Bagement-2 to 6th floor with Linear Accelerator, CT Stimulator, Chemotherapy and Brachytherapy while Kidney unit will be established on the 7th floor to 11th floor with kidney dialysis unit, kidney transplant OT, post-transplant and ICU.
Meanwhile, the heart unit will be set up on the 11th floor to 14th floor with CCU, ICU, Cardiac OT, and Pediatric Cardiac Surgery and Cath lab.
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Besides, a ramp, moving stairs, lift for Covid-19, Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP), 300-KVA power sub-station, 1000-KVA generator, lift, and firefighting system will be constructed under the project.
Sheikh Daud Haider, owner of the contractor firm SN Builders Private Limited, said the construction work was delayed due to various complexities including land acquisition but the construction work of the project is now going on in full swing.
Sheikh Golam Kuddus, project manager of the contractor firm, said the work of two basements has been completed and now the work will end speedily,” he said.
Amit Kumar Biswas, executive engineer of Public Works Department-1, said “Already 21% work has been completed and currently the construction work of the building is going on in full swing.”
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In 2019, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) approved a project involving Tk 2,388.40 crore to set up a 100-bed full-fledged cancer centre in each government medical college hospital in every divisional city.
The Ecnec cleared a total of eight projects with an estimated cost of Tk8,968.08 crore.
Of the approved projects, five are new and the remaining three are revised ones.
Then the project tenure was set from October 2019 to September 2022.
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Bank MDs working under increased stress due to default loans, board interference: Experts
The managing directors (MDs) of commercial banks and financial institutions are dealing with higher stress levels due to rising defaulted loans and pressure to provide loans to unworthy companies.
Four MDs, of three banks and one financial institution, have resigned in recent times, unable to work under such pressure.
Economist Ahsan H Mansur told UNB that this situation hints that MDs are not able to work independently or follow the Bank Company Act.
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“When professionalism is prioritised and the bank is performing well, the MD of such a bank would never try to resign,” he said.
Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, echoed Dr Mansur, saying that many MDs feel that no one can stop the influential persons from engaging in illegal practices.
He said this is a sign of a disaster in the banking sector. So the central bank has to wake up to save the financial sector.
The MDs of Bank Asia, South Bangla Agriculture and Commerce (SBAC) Bank, Padma Bank, and Aviva Finance resigned within a short time recently.
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Among them, the MDs of Padma Bank and SBAC Bank returned to their positions following the intervention of Bangladesh Bank, but the resigned MDs of Bank Asia and Aviva Finance did not return. The process of appointing new MDs has started in these two institutions.
Bank Asia MD Arif Billah Adil Chowdhury resigned on July 26. Padma Bank MD Tarek Riaz Khan stepped down in September. In the same month, South Bengal Agriculture and Commerce Bank (SBAC) Bank's MD Habibur Rahman also submitted his resignation letter. Abdul Jabbar, MD of Aviva Finance, a non-banking financial institution, was the last to resign.
The resignations triggered a fear of instability in the sector.To prevent unrest, top officials of the central bank called the resigned MDs and, in some cases, the chairman and held urgent meetings with them. In these meetings, the MDs who resigned were urged to return to their duties.
The MDs were also assured that the central bank would protect them if the Board of Directors intervened in performing their duties. SBAC Bank MD Habibur Rahman returned to duty before the Central Bank started this process.
Padma Bank MD Tarek Riaz Khan returned to his old position on November 19. Meanwhile, Bank Asia MD Arif Billah Adil Chowdhury's resignation was not accepted. But he refused to return to work.
The process of replacing him with Meghna Bank MD Sohail RK Hussain has started, which is awaiting approval from the central bank.
The MD of Aviva Finance did not return to his duties despite the efforts of the central bank.
Chapainawabganj farmers reap benefits of bountiful summer onion harvest
In Chapainawabganj district, the abundant harvest of summer onions and favorable market prices have delighted local farmers. The successful cultivation of the N-53 variety has made this season particularly profitable.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) played a pivotal role in this success. They provided farmers with essential resources, including 1 kg of N-53 onion seeds, 20 kg of fertilizers (MoP and DAP), pesticides, and Tk 2,800 in cash for labor costs per bigha of land.
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This comprehensive support was part of a government initiative benefiting 4,500 farmers. Additionally, the DAE offered crucial training, which contributed to the bumper yield.
During a visit to Ghorapakhia in the Sadar upazila, the scene was one of industriousness, with farmers diligently harvesting their crops. Sayem Ali, a local farmer, shared his experience: "I've grown onions before, but the N-53 variety has brought an unprecedented yield. I'm expecting to harvest 108 maunds per bigha and, with favorable weather, even 120 maunds." He further noted the profitable market prices, with one maund selling for Tk 2,200. Despite investing Tk 30,000 of his own funds, the returns have been encouraging. Sayem intends to continue with N-53 cultivation, irrespective of government incentives.
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Bagerhat's first-time voters: High hopes and expectations for National Election
As the 12th parliamentary election of Bangladesh approaches, a wave of excitement is sweeping through Bagerhat's first-time voters. These new electors are eager to contribute to their nation's progress by electing their preferred representatives. They see this as a chance to influence the country's development and shape the future.
These young voters harbor aspirations for comprehensive progress in their region. Their wish list includes a corruption-free society, a terrorism-free Bangladesh, and development plans focused on youth.
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They're not just excited but also proactive, offering suggestions to advance their area and the nation. They advocate for modernizing the general and technical education systems, improving education quality at all levels, and ensuring essential goods remain affordable for the average citizen. Their focus is also on maintaining a nation free from corruption and terrorism.
In Bagerhat's four constituencies, 28 candidates from various parties, including the Awami League and independents, are vying for seats. The election buzz is palpable in local markets and tea shops, with voters of all ages discussing the candidates. However, it's the new generation whose interest in the election is most pronounced.
During interviews, young male and female voters from different parts of Bagerhat district shared diverse views on the upcoming election.
Bagerhat District Election Officer Sheikh Muhammad Jalal Uddin disclosed that the district's four constituencies have a total voter count of 1,281,241, comprising 644,136 males, 637,097 females, and eight third-gender voters. Notably, there are 168,248 new voters, split almost evenly between males and females.
Emon Sheikh, a college student, emphasized the importance of young candidates, believing they can contribute more to society. His vote will go to a candidate prioritizing education. Sheikh Hussain, another student, stressed the need for better roads, infrastructure, and living standards, alongside educational improvements. Sheikh Saker Mahmud Prince voiced a desire for honest, capable candidates, wary of those who might misuse their positions.
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Other young voters like Nazmus Sakib, Biplob, Alamin, and Monica highlighted the need for youth-focused initiatives and job creation. They believe in harnessing the power of educated youth and fostering patriotism among citizens.
With high hopes and clear expectations, Bagerhat's new voters are set to play a pivotal role in shaping the political landscape of their region and country.
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Govt cuts LNG import by half amid dollar crisis; gas crisis hits parts of Dhaka
The ongoing dollar crisis has forced the government to cut its import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the international spot market by half.
According to industry insiders, the cut in import has further deepened the ongoing gas crisis.
“Petrobangla had planned to import 48 LNG cargoes from January to December in 2023. But it could manage to import 22 LNG cargoes,” State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid told UNB.
He admitted that the dollar crisis has been the main reason behind reducing the import by half.
“Actually the ongoing dollar crisis has become a big trouble for the power and energy sector,” he said adding that his ministry has been regularly negotiating with the central bank and the Finance Ministry to get adequate dollars to meet the payment in the energy and power sector against the imports.
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“But we’re not getting an adequate supply of dollars to properly implement the import plan,” he said.
Official sources said that the country has a shortage of more than 1500 million cubic feet of gas per day (MMCFD) against the overall demand for 4000 MMCFD.
The official data of Petrobangla, the state-owned upstream organisation in the gas sector, shows that the country produced 2445 MMCFD gas on December 14 (Thursday) including imported LNG (liquefied natural gas) against the demand of 4000 MMCFD.
It shows that the country is getting 361 MMCFD gas from imported LNG as imports witnessed a fall in recent months from a normal 800-900 MMCFD.
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Officials of Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Limited, which is responsible for gas supply to Dhaka and adjoining districts, said that they now receive 1400-1500 MMCFD gas against a demand for 1800 MMCFD meaning a shortage of 300-400 MMCFD gas.
They also said that the recent dollar crisis has forced Petrobangla to reduce its import of LNG which intensified the crisis in recent days.
They feared that it is unlikely that Petrobangla would be able to increase the import of LNG or increase the production from local sources within the next few months as there is no assurance of ending the ongoing dollar crisis.
The country’s foreign exchange reserves declined to below $18 billion this year from $48 last year which put Petrobangla in trouble to get adequate dollars to pay its international suppliers against its purchase of LNG from the global market.
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The country’s gas industry insiders said that the overall gas supply situation deteriorated in the winter with no visible sign of easing the dollar crisis.
Many areas of the capital city Dhaka city have been hit by a gas shortage, causing problems for the consumers.
The situation may worsen in the coming days as no necessary measure is in sight to address the problem.
According to official sources, the areas which have been suffering most due to the crisis include vast area of Mirpur and Mohammadpur, Basabo, old part of city, specially Lalbagh and Chawkbazar, Segunbagicha, Tejgaon, Dhanmondi and Gulshan.
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Residents in these areas alleged that they don’t get adequate gas during the daytime.
Recently, Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) also wrote a letter to the Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry urging it to take necessary measures to improve the gas supply situation as many mills in Narayanganj and Gazipur have been severely experiencing gas shortage.