Substandard CNG cylinders in vehicles threaten lives

Absence of regular pressure check, rise in the number of unauthorised conversion workshops and the use of substandard and faulty CNG cylinders are endangering the lives of both commuters and drivers.
As per rules of the Rupantarita Prakritik Gas Company Limited (RPGCL), the pressure check of CNG cylinders in every five years is mandatory. But sources say most of the car owners are not doing it.
Workshop sources say they carry out 600 to 700 jobs of CNG conversion a month across the country, but they get few jobs for pressure check.
"We receive a few orders for pressure check, though it is mandatory for all CNG cylinder users," Engineer Navil, a senior motor engineer of Intraco CNG Limited (ICL), told the FE Sunday.
He said accidents could take place anytime, if the car owners do not do the pressure check at a cost of Tk 3,500 only.
"The situation is very bad for buses and trucks, that use low quality cylinders but have not done a single check for a long time," Mr Navil added.
He said not only the cylinders but also the kit bulbs "are also important for cylinder safety." Use of any low-cost bulb also could lead to the blast of a cylinder, he added.     
Nazmul Zaman, senior sales executive of Navana CNG, said in the absence of regular monitoring and inspection by the RPGCL, a good number of unauthorised conversion workshops installed low-cost oxygen cylinders in buses and trucks, which might blast anytime under imbalanced pressure.
A CNG cylinder can withstand over 4,000 psi pressure during refuelling while an oxygen cylinder can only bear 3000 psi pressure, according to him.
He said many of the public buses and trucks were using low-cost cylinders available with unauthorised conversion centres.
The country has a total of 145 authorised CNG conversion centres across the country while over three dozen unauthorised conversion centres are there in the city, according to sources.
When contacted, a high official of the RPGCL said, "We are aware of the unauthorised centres. The RPGCL will soon launch a drive against the unauthorised conversion centres."
"The RPGCL has licensed over 200 conversion workshops in different cities aiming to curb the illegal practice," the official said preferring anonymity.
Except a few, most of the workshops are under-equipped and mechanics are not trained as stipulated in the conditions set by the licensing authorities.
According to a rough estimate, only in 2013 more than 20 cylinder blasts took place across the country.
"Most of the accidents occurred at CNG stations during refuelling. Investigations revealed that the vehicles involved in the accidents had faulty cylinders," said Amir Hossain, an inspector of RPGCL.