This year’s third power price hike: Govt is playing with people’s hardship

Within a span of less than two months, the government has again hiked power price for the third time at the retail level. First it was on January 12 it hiked power price by five per cent, then again on January 31 five per cent, and now for the third time on February 28 five per cent. Before the hike on January 12, the government hiked the price of electricity by 19.92 per cent at the producers’ end in December 2022.
Then the government ‘honestly’ declared that at the retail level the power price would remain the same. But it was clear that at the retail level, the barrage of hikes was coming. Earlier, from the energy ministry it was announced that every month the power price of the country would be reviewed. For that purpose, the government changed a BERC rule by which 60 days were needed for public hearing on the question power price hike.
It was clear that the government could not wait for that time and brought change to the BERC rule. There is little doubt that to meet the IMF loan conditionality, the BERC rule was scrapped. The government bestowed the power generation business to some oligarchs that took away public money in the name of rental and quick-rental power plants with huge capacity charges. Now the common people are bearing the burden of this loot.  
But why did not the government hike power prices 15 percent by a stroke instead of three times separately? This is the trick. When some time ago, it raised the fuel oil price at a record margin of more than 50 per cent through an administrative order, the move was criticised hugely.
At that time, a section of opportunist experts advised the government that it should have increased the price in stages rather than in one go. Therefore, the government is not repeating the same mistake that it committed when it hiked the fuel oil price. This time also, like the previous two power price hikes, the protest against the new power tariff will be limited to a section of the country’s media and in the opposition political camps.
The Awami League-led government may think that people have taken it for granted that it has prevailed to remain in power against all opposition and criticism. That is why it is little bothering about people’s democratic rights and immense hardships its steps are causing to people. The spirit of Bangladesh is democracy and the government will have to answer for all its arbitrary acts.