Illegal Gas Connections: Racket pocketing crores of taka a month
An illegal gas line racket in three upazilas of Brahmanbaria has been plundering natural gas worth crores of taka from gas supply lines each month.
The organised criminals are so reckless that they are even issuing "demand notes" and "bill books" to their clients, mentioning the name of Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Limited (BGDCL), and collecting "monthly gas bills" in bank accounts they opened with different banks.
The racketeers include public representatives including a chairman of a union parishad and several local political leaders, alleged locals.
They said in Brahmanbaria Sadar, Sarail and Ashuganj upazilas, the crime syndicate so far "sold" at least 15,000 illegal connections and they usually collect Tk 60 thousand to Tk 90 thousand for each connection, based on the distance of a consumer's house from the main line.
However, sales division officials at Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Limited (BGDCL) said the number of illegal connections in those upazilas would be around 5,000 and they traced 54,031 feet of illegal gas line in those areas.
Most of the illegal connections BGDCL found were in Suhilpur and Budhal unions under Sadar upazila, the officials said, adding that BGDCL has 24,000 valid residential gas connections in the three upazilas.
Locals requesting anonymity, apparently for security reasons, said the key figures in the illegal gas line racket include Suhilpur Union Parishad (UP) Chairman and Jubo League's Sadar upazila unit Joint Secretary Azad Hajari Angur, a member of the same UP and Jubo League's Organising Secretary of the same unit Mohsin Khandaker, Belal Mia from Bakail village in Suhilpur union, Kazi Pabel and Kazi Manzu from Ghatura village in the same union, and Sahed Mia from Madhhayapara of Brahmanbaria town.
Engineer Zahidur Reza, deputy general manager of BGDCL in Brahmanbaria, said they disconnect illegal connections routinely and last year alone, with assistance from the local administration, they so far confiscated 17,953 feet of gas pipes that were laid illegally.
The gas line racket is so powerful that they are often attacking BGDCL officials during disconnection drives, he said, adding that on Monday, they handed over two people to police for attacking four BGDCL officials during a drive in Kalishima area of Brahmanbaria Sadar upazila.
The pace of disconnecting and confiscating illegal pipes by BGDCL is not fast enough as the gas line racket lays kilometres of illegal pipeline in one night. As such, the number of illegal gas connections are on the rise, said locals.
Requesting not to be named, a resident of Malihata village in Suhilpur union said he paid Tk 70 thousand for an illegal connection to his house two and a half years ago. Like others, he was not given any "bill book", but he has been paying his "gas bill" against the "demand note" each month to an account with United Commercial Bank.
Another resident of the same village said after getting gas connection from the same people, he found out later that the documents he had received against the connection were all fake.
According to Bangladesh Gas Act 2010, consumption of natural gas illegally is punishable by three months to a year of jail term and subject to fines between Tk 10 thousand and Tk 5 lakh.
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