<i>PDB regional workshop limps along on limited resources</i>

Power Development Board regional workshop at Mansurabad in the port city, left, and inoperative transformers lying in front of the PDB office at Muradpur, right.Photo: STAR

The Chittagong regional workshop of Power Development Board (PDB) limps along with insufficient manpower while delay in repairing transformers causes immense suffering to consumers in greater Chittagong.
The workshop is responsible for repairing the damaged electric transformers.
It was set up at Mansurabad in the port city around 40 years ago when the PDB had only some 1000 transformers in Chittagong, Rangamati, Khagrachhari, Bandarban and Cox's Bazar under Chittagong region.
In the meantime, the number of transformers has increased by three times in the region that the workshop now can hardly cope with tremendous pressure with its 13-member workforce.
Of the workforce, five are engineers while the rests are foremen, mechanics and electricians.
The workshop has now capacity to repair on an average two transformers a day whereas sometimes, particularly in the rainy season, 20 to 25 transformers arrive there daily, sources said.
The workforce poorly equipped with backdated tools makes frantic efforts to cope with the pressure when it may take several days to repair a single transformer depending on its condition or extent of damage.
The situation is worsening day by day as the number of damaged transformers is increasing at the workshop while the human resources and equipments are not being increased proportionately.
Most of the PDB transformers are 20 to 30 years old while a new one has a capacity to provide sound service for 10 to 12 years, sources said.
Most of the transformers give troubles as around 60 to 70 per cent of them have lost their load capacity, they said.
A total of 117 transformers were repaired at the workshop in July and August while 172 in 2004, 226 in 2005 and 367 in 2006.
Meanwhile, delay in repairing a transformer puts the inhabitants of the concerned area into complete darkness for several days.
Moshfiqur Rahman Tipu, a teacher of Chittagong Residential School and College and resident of Anandipur area, said their locality went without power for two days as the transformer went out of order in the last week of September. "Lack of power also hampered water supply, causing untold sufferings to the residents," he added.
Jalal Ahmed, a resident of Halishahar Road, echoing the same statement said measures for immediate repair of damaged transformers should be taken.
Mohammad Matiur Rahman, executive engineer of the workshop, said they are working hard day and night and even on holidays to provide service to the clients.
"Considering the suffering of our clients we try our level best and make optimum use of our equipments and manpower," he said.
He said they have written to the authorities concerned for modern equipments and increasing number of human resources last month.
PDB Chittagong Chief Engineer DK Poddar said the lone workshop can hardly tackle the huge pressure of repairing the transformers of five districts.
"We have sent proposals to the higher authorities for increasing the resources in the workshop that will help lessen the suffering of the people," he said.