Electricity price hike leaves people struggling

Staff Reporter :
The recent electricity price hike and rising costs of daily essentials have left the low and middle income groups struggling as they are finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with the expenses.
They fear that the prices of food stuff and other services will again increase with the hike of electricity price amid the rising inflation.
The increase in prices of electricity and essential commodities is particularly hard on those with fixed incomes, as they struggle to maintain their standard of living in the face of rising expenses.
As a result of these price hikes, many people are being forced to make difficult decisions regarding their daily expenses.
Many said that they are compromising on the quality of their food and other basic necessities, as they struggle to balance their budgets.
“I have a family of five members. I earn Tk 40,000 per month from a job in a private company. It has really become difficult for me now to run the family as I don’t have additional income,” Rafiqul Islam told the New Nation on Wednesday.
“The electricity price has been increased again. If it increases repeatedly, prices of daily essential will also increase. I don’t know what will happen with us,” he said.
The government has been criticised for its weak handling of the situation, with opposition parties including Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) claiming that it has not done enough to help those affected by the rising costs. BNP has criticised the government’s decision to increase electricity prices by five per cent on Tuesday. This is the third increase in the last two months, and it has left the poor and middle income groups in a state of despair.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir in Gulshan Party Office on Wednesday said that the government has raised the price of electricity three times in the last few months.
“Due to corruption in the electricity sector, expenses have increased, and prices are being raised to fill the budget deficit, which is cutting into people’s pockets,” he said.
“The price of rice, lentils, and oil has also increased. People are living in misery. The people of the country are suffering from food shortages,” he said.
“At this moment, there is no alternative to save Bangladesh’s existence except for a movement to protect it. There is no opportunity for anyone to remain silent in the country. The people must be united in leading the movement forward,” he said.
The oppositions have called on the government to take immediate action to address the situation and ease the burden on the low and middle income groups.
In order to alleviate the sufferings of the low income group of people, the government has introduced Open Market Sale (OMS) programme to sell certain products at low cost.
But such initiatives are not enough and many people are deprived of such products. Even many people in district level don’t know about OMS due to weak management, leaving many people deprived of such products even after waiting for hours in the unending queue.
Even Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has recently asked the authorities to introduce cards for distribution of essentials under the OMS management.
This move is aimed at making the distribution process more transparent and ensuring that the right people are receiving the essential items.
Despite these efforts, the middle and low income groups are alleging that they are not receiving an adequate amount of daily essentials through OMS.
Even in the district level, many are unaware of the OMS program due to weak management. They are also complaining that the items provided are not meeting the growing demands of their families due to their big size.
As the summer season approaches, people are worried about the impact of the increase in electricity prices will have on their already stretched finances.
They are concerned about how they will manage to meet the rising costs of daily essentials, let alone the increased electricity bills.