Anisul Islam Noor :The entrepreneurs have expressed their frustration as they will be under obligation to pay additional amount of Tk 2,000 crore for gas and Tk 500 crore for electricity annually due to price hike, industry insider said.The small industrialists are under pressure of increasing workers’ salaries, bearing high transport fare and production cost apart from meeting higher bank interest, electricity and gas price.Businessmen are worried that the cost of production will rise and the country will be less competitive in the international market. The business cost in Bangladesh will be higher, said an executive committee member of Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI)Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies Research Director Zaid Bakht told The New Nation thatthe gas and electricity new price hike would increase the cost of production, both agricultural and industrial. Economist and rights activist, Anu Mohammad said, it had affected the living standard of the lower and the middle income group of people. He said, ‘Now it should be assessed how many people had gone below the poverty line through losing their purchasing capacity after the rise in the prices of essentials.’ The latest tariff hike of gas and electricity will increase the cost of business, opined the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI). Expressing deep concern over the new price line, DCCI President Hossain Khaled said, the government should rationalise the decision to facilitate industrial, trade and economic growth in the country. “The recent price hike will have manifold impact on businesses. The industries and businesses will be affected badly, as it will increase the cost of doing business, which may affect the country’s export,” in a statement of DCCI said. It said, the newly-declared tariff hike will also cast multiple adverse effects on the country, pushing the inflation to double-digit with other threats to economy. DCCI said, the price of LPG is already at a high level in Bangladesh despite its much lower price in the international market. The trade-body opined that the tariff hike will increase sufferings of the poor and middle-income group of people.”DCCI thinks that price hike is not commensurate and rational enough until there is sufficient improvement of gas and energy supply to meet the growing and diverse need of industry, trade and other economic activities,” the statement said. Moreover, this price hike of energy and power will be added with the recently increased trade license fee. Decision of tariff rise is going to discourage further foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow to Bangladesh in the days to come, as utility crisis has always been marked as a serious concern by prospective foreign investors. Textile and RMG industry’s business growth will be immensely restrained and challenged.
