RSU telephone exchange unit in Jhenidah remains closed for fund crunch

Our Correspondent | Published: August 14, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

JHENIDAH, Aug 13: A Remote Switching Unit (RSU) of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Ltd (BTCL) at Hat Gopalpur bazar under Jhenidah Sadar upazila could not be opened until today due to lack of machineries eligible to run it.
Sources said construction of the RSU building at Hat Gopalpur bazar by a Chinese company under ZTC project took a long time (2005-2013). The project being over, the telephone exchange's coming into operation has now become uncertain for want of money required to purchase necessary equipment.
Hat Gopalpur bazar which is situated beside the Jhenidah-Dhaka Highway, 12 kilometres off the district headquarters, is a very busy commercial area.
There are many establishments in and around the bazar, including several auto rice mills, husking mills, electricity sub-station of WZPDC, a degree college, high schools, primary schools, a police camp, branch of Sonali Bank Ltd and cow and goat market.
Habibur Rahman, a student of Raycharan Tarini Charan Degree College at Hat Gopalpur bazar said he cannot use Internet connectivity of BTCL as the telephone exchange with optical fibre there has long been lying nonfunctioning.
One Muktar Ali, a trader told the FE that if the telephone exchange is in operation and monthly line rent system of BTCL is abolished, many subscribers interested in using telephones for conversation and Internet service will be much benefited here.
Rezaul Karim, 32, a primary teacher, urged the authority concerned to run the telephone exchange with optical fibre from the district to Hat Gopalpur bazar so that people can enjoy Internet connectivity widely in the region. The facility once started; the government can earn a substantial amount of revenue from the service here, he added.
While contacted, Jhenidah Divisional Engineer of BTCL Gaus-ul-Haque told this correspondent some necessary things, including wires at the RSU have been destroyed by rats as it remains unused for long. If an initiative to run the unit is taken after maintenance, it will ameliorate the communication facility of local people, the officer added.