Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday refused to accept the demands made by the staff and officials of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) regarding the recent handing over of the BPDB’s operations in Rangpur and Rajshahi regions to the North West Zone Power Distribution Company (NWZPDC).
The decision came after State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid held a meeting with the prime minister at her office in the capital yesterday. At the meet, the prime minister said the authorities would go with the decision already taken regarding the handing over of the BPDB’s operations to the NWZPDC. The BPDB handed over its operations of distributing power to NWZPDC last week. Since then, staffs members of the power development board have been protesting the government decision. To protest the decision, they even went on a mass-leave programme over the last three days.
The power supply situation, however, remained unhampered during the agitation. The crisis has deepened as the government remained rigid on its stance despite repeated requests from the BPDB employees and officials to scrap the handing over decision.
Contacted, leader of the Sramik-Karmachari-karmakarrta Oikya Parishad Zahirul Islam Chowdhury said they have no other way but to continue with the protest protest even if they are jailed. “I am in a doubt whether our two ministers, who have been assigned to convince the prime minister about our problems, have done their task successfully or not. From Saturday, we will continue our pre-scheduled protest,” Chowdhury added. State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid and Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan had been dealing with the issue and they held a series of talks with the authorities concerned over the demands forwarded by the BPDB staff members.