banglanews24.com :
Explosions of LP gas are taking place frequently causing deaths and destruction of valuable properties in fire. The reason for such accidents is the use of substandard and dilapidated cylinders. The longer the duration of the use of a cylinder is, the greater is the risk and number of accidents.
Gas Cylinder Act 1991 provides for re-testing of cylinders every five years to ascertain the quality of the cylinder. According to the standard of the International Standard Organisations (ISO) re-testing of gas cylinders every five years is mandatory.
It is learnt that 25 years old cylinders are also being used without any retesting. The government authorities remain unmoved despite the incidents of quite a good number cylinder explosions recently. The consumers are also unknowingly staying in the risks in a bid to save money by refraining from purchasing new cylinders. So to say, in the opinion of energy experts several lakhs of people are sitting on sleeping mines.
Neither on the part of government nor the companies concerned any action is visible for retesting of the cylinders. Questions have arisen as to whether these old cylinders would be used for indefinite period of time? The Explosion Department, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority(BRTA), Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) and BSTI, which are responsible for supervision, are sitting with their hands closed.
Energy expert Dr. Shamsul Alam told banglanews24.com. “explosion of gas cylinder has now become a normal incident. But it does not appear that there is anybody to oversee. Retesting is necessary to ensure the security of the consumers. A cylinder cannot be used for indefinite period.”
BERC member Delwar Hossain told banglanews,”Our attention has been drawn to this matter. Number of accidents have increased due to the use of old cylinders. The commission at its meeting decided to issue some guidelines.”
He said advertisement will be floated in the newspapers to create public awareness. LP gas marketing companies have to work with responsiblity. They will have to perform the main duty. If they fail to perform duties properly action would be taken against them, said this commission member.
Delwar Hossain said BERC will start field-level drive and punish the companies and organisations where old and substandard cylinders are found.
Experts said, apart from direct explosion old and substandard LP gas cylinders may cause fire incidence and fatal accident.
Energy experts said, LP gas is lighter than air and if it comes in contact with fire, it results in fatal accident. Sometimes, leakage of LP gas remains unknown by the people concerned unless an accident is caused.
If the cylinder is old then all the valves can not work properly. Gas spreads outside due to leakage of feeble valve. In some cases, gas is being leaked for the sub-standard valve. But there is none to look after this.
Children and women are also getting afflicted with spreading gas besides fire incidents. The harmful carbon of LP gas is creating fatal diseases of people as human bodies are taking this toxic through breathing.
The demand of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) has been increased manifold due to shut down of gas connection for gas shortage. Though the gas connection resumed, the government has taken a decision to provide the connection in a limited way. In this context, the demand of LPG is increasing geometrically.
According to state-owned company Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation, there are demand for three lakh metric tons of LPG but supply is available only of about one lakh tons. BPC is providing 20 thousand tons while other private companies are supplying 80thousand tons. It needs 16 lakh cylinders (capacity of per gas cylinder is 12.5kg) to market the 20 thousand tons of gas.
Apart from the gas of BPC, the Bashundhara Group’s refined gas ‘Bashundhara LP gas’, Total gas, Kleenheat gas, Jamuna and Bin Habib LP gas are being marketed. The LP gas is also being produced by refining crude oil obtained from local gas field and imported gas at state-owned BPC Eastern Refinery and Kailash Tela Refinery station. The state-owned organisation started marketing of LP gas in 1980.
Among the private organisations, only Bashundhara Group is producing some 30 thousand cylinders monthly while Jamnua Group 15 thousand and TK Group 10 thousand cylinders. Others are importing gas from abroad. There are about 20 lakh gas cylinders including the old and new. These include 10lakh cylinders of Bashundhara Group, two lakh of Kleenheat, one lakh of Total gas and rest of the amount of cylinders of some other companies.
In more than one meeting Md Mozzamel Haque Khan, Secretary, Energy and Mineral Resources Division of Ministry of Energy said encouragement will be given to LP gas instead of providing residential gas connection. The power and fertilizer producing industries will be given priority in giving gas connection. But there is no positive outcome in this regard.
Cylinder Producing TK Group’s Deputy General Manager Tariqul Arfan Chowdhury said, “We make cylinder and the life time of a cylinder is 10 years. Responsibility does not go to us if the cylinder is used by someone after using for 10years.”
Mentioning that TK Gropup is engaged in producing cylinders from 1993, he said some unscrupulous traders are stealing gas from the cylinders and refilling in the empty cylinders causing accidents.
Talking to banglnews24.com, Nasrul Hamid, state minister for power, energy and mineral resources said the government is thinking over this matter. The issue of peoples’ safety is being given topmost importance. Necessary initiative will be taken very soon, he said.
