CNG stations, petrol pumps owners’ strike withdrawn
Owners of compressed natural gas (CNG) refuelling stations and petrol pumps today withdrew their indefinite strike scheduled to begin from tomorrow.
They took the decision following the government assurance to fulfil their demands.
Earlier in the afternoon, they held a meeting with Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, and State Minister for Power and Energy Nasrul Hamid at the headquarters of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA).
Bangladesh CNG Filling Station and Conversion Workshop Owners Association on Wednesday threatened to enforce indefinite strike from October 30 if their demands -- including reduction of road rentals fees and scrapping government move to increase CNG price -- are not met by this time.
Meanwhile, petrol pump owners at a press conference on October 19 announced indefinite strike from October 30 to press home their 12-point demand-- mainly reduction of road rentals fees, the same demands made by CNG refuelling station owners.
Coming out of today’s meeting, Obaidul Quader said two separate committees have been formed to look into the matter and asked them to file reports by two months.
As per rule, all the petrol pumps and CNG refuelling stations have to pay a particular amount of rental fee to the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) for using space that connects the stations and the road. The fees are set on the basis of a number of spaces.
But the RHD in October last year ‘abnormally’ increased the fees and imposed other charges, they claimed.
For example, a refuelling station previously had to pay around Tk 53,000 annually for using 24 decimal of land of RHD. But the same station now has to pay around Tk 11.28 lakhs annually.
“Business of CNG refuelling stations and petrol pump owners are now about to be closed following the government decision,” said Masud Khan yesterday.
Their another demand of scrapping government’s move to increase CNG price came as the gas distributor companies have recently proposed the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) to increase CNG price by around 83 percent and the BERC already held a public hearing on it.
The current price of CNG is Tk 35 per cubic metre.
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