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Relevant authorities of public services like electricity supply and metro rail operations should immediately announce any disruption, simultaneously seeking apology to the people for their inconvenience.
Expected time to be required for restoration of the services must also be similarly announced through media and television scrolls, Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan told a press briefing at Bangladesh Secretariat on Sunday.
Road, railways and other services alike should also go for such announcements, he said, talking about the disruption in metro rail operations followed by the power grid failure in southern districts on Saturday.
He expressed dissatisfaction that the ministries or agencies concerned did not report him formally about the Saturday's incidents, and said he first learned about the disruptions through social media.
Stressing that customer and passenger services are not acts of charity but essential responsibilities, he sought explanations from the relevant offices for the failure to communicate and properly inform the people.
About concerns over power supply, the adviser acknowledged that load-shedding is currently happening and would continue due to rising electricity demand driven by extreme heat.
He also warned that the power generation currently stands at 16,500 megawatts and is expected to rise to 18,000 megawatts, putting further pressure on the grid.
Experts, he noted, have recommended going for some controlled load-shedding to avoid a surge in subsidies.
He pointed out that electricity production has not kept pace with the rapid increase in the use of air-conditioners, and emphasised on responsible energy consumption.
To investigate the recent grid failure that left several districts in Barisal and Khulna without electricity for up to 96 minutes, Mr Khan said the ministry formed an eight-member committee, headed by BUET Deputy Vice Chancellor Abdul Hasib Chowdhury.
The committee has been tasked with identifying the cause of the grid failure, assessing responsibility, and determining if any conspiracy was involved. The committee is supposed to submit a report within seven working days.
Additionally, a separate probe, led by BUET Professor Shamsul Haque, has been launched to investigate the metro rail disruption, which officials initially attributed to a power shortage.
The grid failure was traced to a short-circuit caused by two 400 kV wires coming too close in the Aminbazar-Gopalganj circuit line, according to PGCB and BPDB sources.
Although the power supply was restored across affected areas from Saturday evening, the incident has raised fresh concerns about the grid stability.
On wider energy sector challenges, the adviser noted that declining domestic gas production and limited financial capacity to import LNG are the contributing factors behind the strain on electricity supply.
Despite these challenges, he reassured that the ministry is actively working to ensure grid stability and maintain an uninterrupted power supply as best as possible.
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