CNG pump owners defer strike to Dec 21

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FE Report
The CNG pump owners for the second time have deferred their strike to December 21 from the earlier declared November 26 as the government has sought more time to fulfil their demands.
The association of the CNG filling station and conversion workshop owners Tuesday in a meeting with the Petrobangla in Dhaka rescheduled their strike.
In the face-to-face meeting, state-run energy corporation Petrobangla's Chairman Hossain Mansur and president of the CNG filling station and conversion workshop owners association Safiul Islam Kamal led their teams.
Since the government has failed to comply with all the demands of the CNG station owners by the stipulated time November 25, the Petrobangla sought more time from them, an executive of the association said.
After the meeting, CNG filling station association General Secretary Zakir Hossain Nayan said the government has sought more time up to December 15 to fulfil their demands. "We have given them time up to December 20."
"We are very unhappy with government's action. Yet, we have considered Petrobangla's request and postponed our strike to December 20. If the government fails to meet with demands this time we will start indefinite strike at our filling stations from December 21," he said.
Protesting the government's decision to continue the six hours' ban of pump operation from 3pm to 9pm everyday, the CNG filling station owners on October 2 called indefinite strike from the first day of November.
The owners' association had given one-month ultimatum to the government for fulfilling their 7-point demand including withdrawal of six hours' embargo and eliminating the plan for CNG price hike.
On October 28, the CNG owners' association in a meeting with the State Minister for Power and Energy Mohammad Enamul Haque in Dhaka rescheduled their strike to November 25 as the government sought some time to consider their demands.
Mr. Nayan said, "as the country is facing severe gas crisis, we are ready to accept gas rationing in principle".
"If the government reduces the existing six hours' CNG pump operation embargo to three hours we will be ready to cancel our scheduled strike", he said.
From August 16 this year, the government has put embargo on operation of the CNG filling stations across the country from 3:00pm to 9:00pm to save gas for the energy-ravenous power generation plants and household uses.