Govt aims to reach electricity to every household

The government is planning to bring whole Bangladesh within the countrywide power distribution network to reach electricity to every household since the country has already achieved the capability of generating more than 11,265 megawatt power, reports BSS.
Prime Minister (PM) and Leader of the House Sheikh Hasina said this in reply to a supplementary raised by treasury bench member AKM Rahmatullah in the House during her question-answer session Wednesday.
"Our aim is to reach electricity to every household of the country and we have a firm belief that we can achieve the goal Insha Allah," Sheikh Hasina said while explaining her government's steps for increasing power generation side by side with working ceaselessly to free the whole country from loadshedding.
"We don't think about only Dhaka city, our target is to free the whole country from loadshedding," she said with firm confidence and added that the government was boosting power generation through coal-fired, solar and hydroelectricity power plants.
The PM urged the countrymen to be economic in using electricity and said the government can reach power to every household if the people become careful in making the prudent use of electricity.
"If we all become frugal and maintain austerity in using electricity and water, payment of the bills will be less to the greater benefit of all consumers," she said and put emphasis on reducing subsidy on electricity as the people would have to pay the price spent for generating electricity.
Myanmar to bring back Rohingyas
Prime Minister and Leader of the House Sheikh Hasina said the Myanmar government is very much sincere to bring back their 39,000 registered refugees from Bangladesh, reports BSS.
"Work on their (refugees) return to Myanmar is in progress as the Myanmar government is sincerely looking into this matter," she said in reply to a supplementary question from treasury bench member Didarul Alam during her question answer session in the House.
Terming the Rohingya refugees a problem, she said several lakh Rohingya intruders entered Bangladesh during the rule of BNP-Jamaat government in 1991 and of them 39,000 have been registered only.
Sheikh Hasina said the Rohingya issue was raised before the Mayanmar government as well as their opposition leader, and they have assured Bangladesh of taking necessary measures for their return home.
"Bilateral relation between the two countries is better now than it was in the past and our government is continuously discussing the issue with the Myanmar government," the Prime Minister said.
The leader of the House, while answering to another tabled question on the outcome of the third BIMSTEC Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, the capital of Myanmar, said the government reiterated its firm commitment to help alleviate poverty in the BIMSTEC region to ensure dignity, improve the quality of life and well-being of the people. She said the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) summit reached a consensus on various regional issues including increase in trade and commerce, development of communication, poverty alleviation, agriculture, food security, resisting terrorism and environment. The Bangladesh government promised to set up a Poverty Alleviation Center here, and ministries of planning and foreign are jointly working in this connection, the PM mentioned.
Sheikh Hasina said three important Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) involving weather and culture were signed in the third BIMSTEC summit in Myanmar.
Under this, she said, a permanent BIMSTEC Secretariat will be established in Dhaka and it would be the first headquarter of any regional association in Bangladesh.
In reply to a question of lawmaker Rustom Ali Farazi about the government's stand on the China's proposal for a financial institution, Sheikh Hasina said, "We have got a proposal and we have to go through it first."

Police to get 50,000 more manpower
Prime Minister and Leader of the House Sheikh Hasina said her government has taken a decision in principle to recruit 50,000 more manpower for the police force.
"Moreover, a process for constituting a special counter-intelligence unit is going on to contain terrorism," she said relying to a written question from treasury bench member Shamsul Haque Chowdhury during her question-answer session in the House.
She said a total of 30,474 new manpower have been added to the police force by creating new specialised units in the organisational structures of the force to maintain law and order.  "Creation for 1,557 new posts is under process," she said.
Sheikh Hasina said her government is following the 'zero tolerance' policy to root out terrorism.
"Surveillance has been stepped up through patrolling on highways and river routes round-the-clock and using modern technologies to eliminate terrorism," she said.