The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) is going to take legal action against officials of the Rural Electrification Board who were behind a threat to abstain from work and even shutdown electricity in their areas to realise their demands. ACC documents seen by UNB show that it asked five officials of various Palli Bidyut Samity (PBS) units under the Rural Electrification Board (REB) to face interrogation. The five officials are - Humayun Kabir, DGM of Barisal PBS-1; Asaduzzaman Bhuiya, Deputy General Manager (DGM) of Brahmanbaria PBS; Samiul Kabir and Bipasha Islam, Deputy General Manager (technical) of Manikganj unit, Rajon Kumar Das, Assistant General Manager (AGM) of Munshiganj PBS. ACC on Thursday formed a three-member team headed by assistant director Shahidur Rahman for the purpose. The other two members are assistant director Papon Kumar Saha and deputy assistant director Mohammed Shahjalal ACC sues ex-chairman of Samabay Bank Mohiuddin Ahmed, wife ACC also said it received an allegation of earning illegal money against Humyaun Kabir from the investigation and inquiry unit of REB, which was filed by the proprietor of Khan Traders Masud Khan. Humayun Kabir is one of the coordinators of an Anti-Discrimination Movement inside PBS. The complaint said Humayun Kabir raised more than TK 225 crore to destabilise the political situation, aiming to embarrass the interim government. The complaint also states that the coordinators of the so-called movement inside the various PBS units have an ill-motive for the nationalisation of employees who are currently working on the master roll basis. On Thursday, ACC issued a letter to Humayun Kabir, as well as the DGM of Brahmanbaria PBS Asaduzzaman Bhuiya, to come before it to face interrogation on October 27, while the other three - Samiul Kabir, Bipasha Islam and Rajon Kumar Das - have been summoned to appear on October 28. Earlier, a section of officials from various PBS units under the REB issued a stark ultimatum, threatening a “complete shutdown” following the termination and arrest of key officials across several districts. The officials are demanding the immediate reinstatement of the 10 terminated PBS executives and the release of those arrested, giving authorities 24 hours to meet their demands. They have also called for the removal of the REB chairman within the same timeframe, warning that failure to comply will result in a "Long March Towards Dhaka,"in the form of a mass protest involving tens of thousands of PBS employees. The threat was made in a statement from the PBS Anti-discrimination Movement, signed by its four coordinators: Abdul Hakim, Md Salahuddin, Mohammad Asaduzzaman Bhuiya, and Rajon Kumar Das. “Some 45,000 staff of the PBSs will be forced to go for a long march if the two-point demand is not met,” the statement emphasised. The controversy erupted after the REB terminated 10 senior officials from different PBS units, accusing them of destabilising the power sector, which is considered an essential service. The terminations also cited allegations of insubordination and involvement in activities that violated the organisation's disciplinary codes. Additionally, a working inspector from Noakhali PBS was relieved of his duties. Among those dismissed are officials from various regions: Zakir Hossain, Senior General Manager of Cumilla PBS-4; Asaduzzaman Bhuiya, Deputy General Manager (DGM) of Brahmanbaria PBS; Rajon Kumar Das, Assistant General Manager (AGM) of Munshiganj PBS; Manir Hossain, AGM of Netrokona PBS; Dipak Kumar Sinha, DGM of Cumilla PBS-1; Abdul Hakim, AGM of Dhaka PBS-1; Md Salauddin, AGM of Dhaka PBS-2; Md Rahat, DGM of Magura PBS; Md Zakir Hossain, Senior GM of Cumilla PBS-4; and Humayun Kabir, DGM of Barisal PBS-1.  

Two employees of the Rural Electrification Board (BREB) were killed in a train accident at Jamalpur’s Sarishabari upazila as their motorbike was hit by a train heading to Bangabandhu Bridge East Railway Station on Monday. Deceased Ali Hasan, 35, was a BREB Meter Testing Supervisor of Sarishabari zone, originally from Monakosha Hat Pachil village under Shahjadpur upazila of Sirajganj district, and Sultan Mia, 33, was a BREB electrician and resident of Sarishabari. According to the police, while crossing the railway line in Satpoya Jamtali area of the upazila, the duo on a motorbike was hit by the Dhaleshwari Express train. Locals rushed them to Sarishabari Upazila Health Complex, the on-duty doctor declared them dead. READ: Unidentified youth killed in train Accident AGM of BREM Sarishabari zonal office Nurul Huda said that the accident occurred while they were going on a field visit. SI Mujibul Haque, in-charge of Sarishabari railway police outpost, said two people were killed in the accident but no complaint has yet been received from the families of the victims. However, an unnatural death case would be filed in this regard, he added.

Five largest partner organisations (POs) of state-owned IDCOL, who played a vital role in expanding the solar home system (SHS), are now seeking the government’s intervention to resolve the loan write-off issue. Otherwise, they say, they will be deprived of the benefit and face huge losses. Official sources said IDCOL recently forwarded a proposal to the Bangladesh Bank seeking a write-off approval of Tk 306.41 crore default loans for its 39 POs. Its 44 POs have about Tk 1,400 crore in default loans. Also read: Is solar power the solution to Bangladesh's growing energy ... They said these loans, provided by IDCOL, became default because of the government’s fast grid power expansion programme. “Grid electricity expanded to the off-grid areas that discouraged SHS consumers to pay back the loans they received from POs. Such unpaid loans finally made the POs defaulters in paying back the IDCOL,” said a top official of a firm involved in the renewable energy programme.  IDCOL had distributed the loan after receiving funds from different donor agencies, including the World Bank.    Read Govt rooftops can generate 2,000 MW of solar power, say experts According to World Bank’s latest data, an estimated $1,094.93 million was invested in the HSH project to provide electricity to about 20 million people — which means about $266 per household. Of the investment, 63 percent came from the World Bank, 14 percent from the Asian Development Bank and 12 percent from the Japan International Cooperation Agency. The entire fund was distributed by IDCOL as a soft loan which resulted in saving Bangladesh $1,852 million while providing clean energy since 2003, says a recent World Bank survey. Also read: Rooftop solar power: 'Net metering can ensure cheaper ... It said the project helped households gain $745 million, partner organisations $310 million and the IDCOL $379 million while the government's net benefit was $474 million, said the donor agency. Solar industry insiders said the SHS programme was launched by IDCOL in 2003. In the last 18 years, over 5.5 million solar home systems were installed. They said that there was a tripartite partnership to the financial model under which IDCOL provided about 70 percent of the total cost of installing the SHS as soft loans to the POs, while the remaining 30 percent was invested by the POs and the customers themselves. Read Green energy's share of power generation lagging far behind conventional sources

Two workers died of electrocution in Char Kotpara village of Naria upazila in Shariatpur while working for local Rural Electrification Board (REB) on Sunday.

Power Division has finally asked all the power distribution entities to directly purchase electricity from solar mini-grid operators to save their investment.