Govt urged not to raise power price of cold storages

The cold storage owners have urged the government not to increase electricity price of cold storages considering it an agriculture-based sector following the recent power price hike.
They sought a 20 per cent rebate and exemption of a 5.0 per cent VAT (Value Added Tax) on electricity bills, said a press release.
Bangladesh Cold Storage Association chairman Md Jasim Uddin said: "The government has recently increased the price of power which is unfortunate for us as it is the main element of the cold storage industry. No one can run a cold storage without it."
"Each of the cold storages pays a big amount of electricity bills per month, but in absence of electricity they have to depend on diesel which costs three times higher than power."
He said: "The government has increased electricity price on six occasions in last 2 to 3 years which has created a negative impact on the industry. Moreover, the recent price hike has created an uncertainty over survival of the cold storage industry."
The maintenance cost, labourer wages, prices of machinery parts, diesel and gas have already increased several times and in addition the recent power price hike has made the cold storage owners perplexed.
The cold storage owners had earlier requested the government to consider them an agriculture-based industry and not to increase the power price of their units. But they are yet to get any response from the authorities.