Electricity rates hikes

It is unfair, morally untenable and breach of public trust on the part of the government to repeatedly raise electricity charges without caring to curb the systems loss. Why is it that moves are not taken to plug the loopholes of wastes in terms of unpaid bills that various government ministries, corporations and other public bodies owe to PDB? How is it that year after year, bad debt is allowed to accrue in the public sector while it is the average consumer who must continue to bear the burden of ever-burgeoning electricity bill?
These are valid questions that must now be asked and answered by relevant authorities, for whilst it may make perfect sense to “balance the books” by adding a few zeros in the ledger of accounts, serious thought must go into the implications of a rise in production costs making our products uncompetitive in the world market and go beyond reach of local consumers.
Nothing is more music to ear for the Power Development Board (PDB) when it suggests nearly a 60 per cent hike in electricity bills which both industrial and retail consumers will have to endure from the beginning of the new fiscal year. It is ironic that the Chairman of PDB proposed in the third week of May that the price of electricity may be raised “a little bit” along with energy conservation measures to minimise the country's losses and reduce power outages. Little did we expect that “little bit” to represent a hike of 50 to 60 per cent from present tariff rates.
Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission, a body that is supposed to hold public hearings representing various stakeholders including consumers has sadly not been upholding its end of the bargain of late. Although we are told that a hearing will take place in July to address concerns of the various interest groups, the body fails to inspire hope that the government will backtrack from its current position. The increased tariff that will affect both bulk and retail consumers will have a domino effect of raising costs of production, which will at the end of the day be borne by the average consumer. The rationale for such a significant increase in tariff falls flat in the face of falling crude prices in the international market with these down to around US$90 a barrel.