'Rajshai will not get gas soon'
Fund constraint main reason
Staff Correspondent, Rajshahi
The government has no immediate plan to supply gas to Rajshahi.Rajshahi people have already observed a day's hartal and called another dawn to dusk hartal on July 31 for gas supply. They are holding agitation programmes almost every day demanding gas supply within the current financial year. But sources at West Regional Gas Transmission Company (WRGC) said there is little possibility of gas supply to the divisional town Rajshahi by 2006. "A plan for gas supply to Rajshahi is yet to be submitted to the energy ministry though this was among 14 priority projects for Rajshahi", a highly placed source in Petro Bangla said when contacted from here. "Gas will first go to Bogra and Pabna district towns and two major projects for this is being implemented now", he said. Under the West Regional Gas Supply Project, a 225-km gas pipeline will be completed by the current financial year at a cost of Tk 54 crore. The pipeline will go through Sathia, Bera, Sahjadpur, Pabna, Iswardi and Sirajganj. Ten percent of the project work has been completed and the rest will be completed by June next year. Three power plants including the one in Baghabari, 34 mills and factories and 14 industries in the areas are being connected with the main pipeline. A 66-km main pipeline is being laid from Nalka in Sirajganj to Bogra at a cost of Tk 182 crore and another 220 km sub-line would be laid in Bogra at a cost of Tk 45 crore for gas supply to Bogra town, the sources said. "Any other major project (for gas supply to Rajshahi) is not possible before completion of the two pipeline projects (for gas supply to Bogra) because of fund constraint", said the Petro Bangla official preferring anonymity. Additional money for supply of gas to Rajshahi has not been allocated in the budget, he said. Official sources said, a feasibility study was conducted in 1999 after the WRGC was launched. The study said gas supply to Rajshahi for domestic consumption would not be economic. It could be considered keeping in view the planned construction of a 1000 MW power plant and an agro-based export processing zone in Rajshahi, they said.
| 
