Dhaka households hit hard by gas crisis

Households in the capital have been enduring a severe gas shortage. The residents, especially the housemakers, are suffering the most due to gas outages. Most of the areas in the capital have been out of gas for a long time. The crises have gotten worse, with some areas not getting gas for most of the day. Other areas only see a bit, causing suffering to the housewives.

Golapi, a housewife from Mohammadpur Salimullah Road, said: "After completing all household chores when it is time to go to sleep, gas comes. So, most of the day after 11:30 pm, we have to turn on the stove. Since the gas pressure is low, it takes two to three times as long to cook. We have to cook food for the next day too.' She raised her tone of annoyance by asking when this miserable suffering would end. The same situation is in various places in Dhaka including Mirpur, Adabor, and Dhanmondi.

Jobair Mahmud, a house owner in Dhaka's Kalyanpur, said: "Our house has 12 gas lines throughout the building. None of the lines gets a gas supply almost all day. Especially on Fridays, there is no gas at all. Despite having two stoves, we have to light one stove and cook for hours. Because the gas pressure is so low, two stoves cannot be lit at the same time."

Gas pressure is usually low in winter. As the temperature drops, liquid accumulates in the pipeline, reducing the gas supply. However, the residents of the capital have been suffering from this crisis for a long time. In the meantime, customers have been suffering because of the gas crisis due to renovations throughout the year.

From January 1 to January 4, the supply of RLNG from the Accelerate Energy terminal in Maheshkhali, Cox's Bazar was stopped for maintenance and repair work. As a result, the countrymen including the capital dwellers suffered from the shortage of gas supply. Unable to overcome the acute crisis, Petrobangla has once again announced that the terminal will be closed for repairs and maintenance from Friday, January 10 to January 13. As a result, gas pressure will be low across the country for three days.

Due to the decrease in gas supply, the residents of the capital are once again suffering from a severe crisis in the residential sector due to low pressure.

"Although there are problems all year round, the gas crises have been terrible in the last three months. When guests suddenly come to the house, one has to face embarrassment. One has to buy LP cylinders to cook at home," said Touseful Islam, a permanent resident of Dhaka's Eskaton.

He said: "The gas runs out at 5 am and comes back in the evening. Even then, the supply is so low that it takes a long time to finish cooking. Although this problem has been present throughout the year, the problem has increased a lot in the last three months."

Experts say that in winter, the gas pressure is naturally low due to the accumulation of liquid in the pipeline. Besides, the old lines, the lack of separate supply to residential and commercial lines in most cases, the closure of supply at the LNG station in Maheshkhali for renovation and repair, and above all, the decrease in production have increased the gas crisis. However, everyone's question is when will the gas crisis be resolved?

The general manager of Titas Gas told Views Bangladesh: "The gas pressure is low due to various reasons including the closure of the LNG terminal, and renovation. Besides, liquid gas freezes in the supply line in winter, which reduces the gas pressure. Besides, although 1400 million cubic feet of gas is supplied to the Titas area, 200 million cubic feet of gas is coming less due to the closure of various terminals. However, I hope this problem will be resolved soon."