Villages to get uninterrupted power supply for next 2 weeks for Aman irrigation

The Cabinet has directed authorities to provide uninterrupted power supply to the villages from midnight to dawn for the next 12-15 days to facilitate irrigation for Aman paddy production.

Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said this while briefing journalists after a cabinet meeting, on Monday.

Earlier, a virtual cabinet meeting was held that was chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The Prime Minister joined the meeting through a video conference from her official residence of Ganabhaban. The ministers were physically present in the meeting room of the Cabinet Division.

The cabinet secretary said the cabinet has given a directive to both Energy, Power and Mineral Resource and Agriculture ministries. The directive followed a suggestion put by several ministries to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the villages for Aman irrigation. The villages will get incessant power supply amid the country-wide electricity rationing for the next two weeks.

The farmers are now busy watering their farms for transplanted Aman production.

While responding to a reporter, he said, REB (Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board) has been asked to ensure as much power supply as possible so that a continuous irrigation can be ensured from midnight to dawn. It is a good decision for the farmers .

The cabinet secretary said some two or three important decisions were made in the meeting. One is how to make the power management more effective. There have been many discussions about that. Industries that are very distinctive should not be disrupted. He said fertiliser plants, if shut, take much longer to get restarted.