BNP leader inaugurates power connections in AL minister’s programme

In a rare display of political bonhomie, Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal let a BNP leader inaugurate power connections for 20 villages in his electoral constituency.

The minister said he did it for the sake of political harmony.

At Saturday’s programme, just before the power connection inauguration, Kamal asked if there were any BNP leaders present, according to a media statement from the ministry.

When Jodda Union’s BNP leader Shariful Islam stepped forward, the minister let him inaugurate electricity connections that will benefit 3,183 consumers in the Comilla-11 constituency.

“There’s no place for violence in Bangladesh politics,” the statement quoted Kamal as saying.

He was elated that the country had ascended to a lower-middle income category.

“We need a change in our political culture to reap benefit of this progress,” he added.

At the programme, about 200 activists of BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami’s local units joined the Awami League.

According to the ministry’s statement, the 20 villages that got power connections are spread across five unions – Adda, Bakshganj, Mokra, Doulkharh, and Peria – and located about 40 kilometres from the City.

Minister Kamal said the government planned to provide power connections to all villages.

He assured prompt steps would be taken against anyone found indulging in irregularities in providing power connections.

Power generation capability of the country has tripled to 11,000 MW in the last six years.

Bangladesh inked an agreement with Russia for constructing a nuclear power plant in Rooppur in 2013 as the government aims to produce 20,000MW by 2021.

Two leading Indian companies Reliance Power and BPDB signed a MoU with state-run Power Development Board to develop four units of power plants to produce 3,000MW in Bangladesh.

During his recent Dhaka visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that India would enhance the supply of power to Bangladesh from the existing 500MW to 1,100MW.