Sunamganj city dwellers have been suffering immensely due to frequent power outages and an acute shortage of municipal water supply for the last few days amid scorching heat.
Since Tuesday morning, residents in different areas including Betganj, Ambarkhana, Boropara, Hazirhat, Mallikpur, Thana, and Dirai, have been facing intermittent electricity supply.
Each area experienced extensive load shedding for a minimum of six hours on Tuesday alone. The situation deteriorated further on Wednesday with temperatures soaring from 35 to 36 degrees Celsius, exacerbating the woes, according to locals.
The municipal water supply has also been severely affected, compounding the hardships faced by residents.
Residents from different parts of the town voiced their anguish.
In Hazirhat, residents expressed frustration over not receiving even an hour of water supply. Similar sentiments were echoed by residents of New Hasonnagar, where power outages occurred 10-12 times during Wednesday night.
Abu Taher, a resident of the New Hasonnagar area, said power outages occurred 10-12 times on Wednesday night.
Niloy Sarkar of the Shahid Abul Hossain Road area said that from Wednesday morning until late afternoon, there was no electricity for more than five hours.
Rishikesh Banik from the Notunpara area said that from Wednesday to Thursday afternoon, there was only 12 hours of electricity in a span of 24 hours, causing distress to the densely populated area.
The supervising engineer of the sales and distribution division of Sunamganj Power Development Board, Md. Abu Numan, described the situation as a national issue, with electricity supply falling short by several megawatts compared to demand.
General manager of Sunamganj Palli Bidyut M Milon Kumar Kundu said due to the shortfall in supply, residents have been facing up to 50% load shedding since Tuesday.
Customers accustomed to get 20-22 hours of electricity daily are now getting only 10-12 hours over two days, significantly disrupting normal life.
Mayor Nader Bakht of Sunamganj Pourashava expressed deep concern over the power crisis, especially its impact on municipal services.
He highlighted the challenges faced by water supply workers, who require hours to draw, purify, and distribute water from the river.
Any interruption in electricity during peak demand hours from 8am to 9pm compounds the challenges faced by the already-strained workforce, he said.