Titas Gas Company has disconnected the gas connection to the Rayerbazar residence of BNP Standing Committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy due to his outstanding bills with the company.According to Titus Gas authorities, the gas connection was snapped during a drive against the bill defaulters.Confirming the report, Titas Gas Managing Director Harunur Rashid Mollah said that the gas connection was disconnected due to the outstanding bill of about Tk 170,000, over about 30 months unpaid. Read: Titas disconnects 8,000 more illegal gas lines in N'ganjTitas Gas officials said that the house in Rayerbazar’s Sher-e- Bangla Road, belonging to Gayeshwar Roy, has seven double burner stoves.He last paid the bill in January 2020. Since then, the BNP leader has not paid his bill for the last 30 months till July this year. His total outstanding bill stands at Tk 170,368. Read: ASK September report paints grim picture of human rights in BangladeshTitus MD Harunur Rashid Mollah said that the connection will be restored if the outstanding amount is paid along with the penalty.According to Titas sources, the company ran a special drive through its 30 teams across the city to disconnect illegal connections and also the connections of bill defaulters.A total of 133 connections were disconnected while Tk 26.97 lakh in dues have been collected immediately.

Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company disconnected another 8,000 illegal gas connections in Bandar upazila of Narayanganj on Tuesday. A mobile court led by Fatema Tuz Zohra, executive magistrate and assistant commissioner (AC-land), conducted two separate drives in Gukuldasher Bag and Ispahani Bazar area of Dhamgarh union. Titas also removed around nine kilometres of illegal pipelines and seized a huge amount of risers during the drives. So far, 12,000 illegal gas lines have been disconnected in Bandar upazila. Earlier, 4,000 illegal gas connections were disconnected at two spots of Kuripara and Bage Jannat Masjid Road of the upazila. Md Suruj Alam, deputy general manager of Titas regional marketing department in Sonargaon, said the largest natural gas distributor in the country snapped around 30,000 illegal gas connections in three phases.    Also read: Illegal gas connections still in system despite repeated moves: Titas MD

Authorities have instructed the Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Limited to conduct a comprehensive study on the allegation that non-metered consumers of gas pay almost double the amount paid by metered consumers for similar use. The instruction has been given by the Energy and Mineral Resources Division at a monthly meeting to review the implementation of the Annual Development Programme of the ministry. “If necessary, Titas can involve the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) in conducting the study in a perfect manner” Senior Secretary of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division Mahbub Hossain reportedly told the meeting. A senior official who attended the meeting informed UNB that the issue of disparity between the two categories of Titas Gas consumers was widely discussed there. It was reported in the meeting that a pre-paid metered consumer uses 40-50 cubic meter of gas and pays around Tk 500-630 a month while a non-meter consumer has to pay almost double at Tk 975 for the same quantity of consumption. The issue drew special attention as the Titas Gas recently moved a proposal to the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) to raise the gas price by 117 per cent. As per the proposal, if it is accepted by the BERC, a single burner user will have to pay over Tk 2000 per month. The Titas Gas managing director, who was present at the meeting, was asked to explain as to why the company’s prepaid gas meter project is being delayed. Meeting sources said the Titas top executive failed to provide any satisfactory answer. Rather, he said installation of a pre-paid meter costs Tk 23,000 of which 14,000 is the meter’s value and the rest is data centre management cost. READ: Illegal gas connections still in system despite repeated moves: Titas MD In this case, currently, a consumer pays only Tk 100 per month as the rent of the meter considering 20 years for a meter’s lifetime which is not commercially profitable for Titas, he reportedly said.             Because, a meter’s actual lifetime is 10 years and after every ten year it needs recalibration which gives no guarantee for proper operation. The Titas MD proposed to consider the pre-paid meter’s lifetime to be at 10 years and rent to be double at Tk 200 per month to recover the cost of a meter.      There are 4.3 million gas consumers across the country where a total of six distribution companies are operating. Among them, Titas is the largest operator having 2.8 million consumers and it is responsible for the supply of natural gas to Dhaka and its adjoining districts including Mymensingh, Netrokona, Sherpur, Jamalpur, Norsingdi, Manikganj, Munshiganj, Gazipur and Narayanganj since its founding in 1964. So far only 400,000 pre-paid gas meters have been installed in different areas in Dhaka city including Dhanmondi, Mohammadpur, Gulshan, Banani, Baridhara, Uttara, Mohammadpur, Badda, Tejgaon, Cantonment, Kafrul, Khilkhet, and Mirpur under a JICA-funded project.   Another 120,000 metres are now being installed in different areas in central city areas, including Paltan, Ramna, New Market, Khilgaon and Segunbagicha under the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC). But most of the consumers of Titas gas and other gas distribution companies remained unmetered and pay double the bills compared to metered consumers every month.

Titas Gas officials have admitted on Wednesday that despite their repeated efforts illegal connections of gas are still in the system as it is not physically possible to keep surveillance on its huge network in and outside Dhaka city.   “It’s really tough to guard the gas lines. On one side we disconnect the illegal lines, on the other side the thieves restore illegal connections and steal the gas. It’s like a cat and mouse game,” Titas Gas MD Harunur Rashid Mollah told the public hearing on gas price hike proposals on Wednesday in the city. Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) is holding the hearing at the city’s BIAM Auditorium to listen to the stakeholders’ arguments on the proposals. At the hearing, Harunur sought the consumers’ cooperation to stop illegal connections and stealing of gas through such lines. BERC Chairman Abdul Jalil, members Maqbul-e-Elahi Chowdhury, Bazlur Rahman, Mohammad Abu Farooq were present on the occasion. Most of the Titas employees and officials are honest while 10 percent might be dishonest, claims Harunur. READ: Titas Gas asked to act against officials who failed to increase customer services The Titas Gas top boss said 23,000 illegal connections were disconnected in December last, 18,000 in January, 33,000 in February and 25,000 in March. At the public hearing, Titas Gas proposed a 117 percent increase in household prices while the technical evaluation committee of the watchdog body recommended a 10.76 percent rise in the gas price. The evaluation committee has also recommended increasing the price of gas for two burner ovens to Tk 1,080 from Tk 975 while Tk 990 for single burner oven from the existing price of Tk  925. It also made identical recommendations for Titas Gas like other companies that gas price for per cubic meter might be raised to Tk5.34 from the existing Tk 4.44 for power sector, Tk 15.50 from Tk 13.85 for captive power, Tk 5.34 from Tk4.44 for fertiliser factories, Tk12.65 from 10.70 for tea industries, Tk27.60 from Tk23 for commercial consumers, Tk 49.50 from Tk43 while Tk 18 from 12.60 for metered gas oven at household consumers.

Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company is going to take up a massive project to overhaul its age-old gas pipelines in Dhaka metropolitan city to make the flow more smooth and minimize risks of accidents. Official sources said the plan for changing the ageing pipelines came to be regarded as the core needs amid a series of recent explosions and fire accidents blamed on faulty and leaking lines. When a huge explosion killed at least six people and injured several others in Moghbazar in last June, fire service officials suspected leakage in Titas gas line as the cause. Also read: N;ganj mosque blasts: 8 suspended officials of Titas Gas held Leakage in Titas pipeline at a mosque in Fatullah led to the explosions in six air conditioners leaving at least 27 people killed and over a dozen injured during Friday prayers in 2020, in one of country’s worst gas explosions. These tragic incidents apart, the issue of the leakage in pipelines also came to the attention of the authorities when Titas Gas started installing pre-paid meters in parts of the city.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Monday questioned another five officials of Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company over charges of illegal accumulation of wealth through corruption. ACC secretary Anwar Hossain Hawlader told reporters that they were being questioned on various corruption charges, including illegal acquisition of assets. Deputy Director and investigation officer of the Commission Nurul Huda interrogated them at the ACC head office from 10.30am to 5 pm. READ: Those aged 12-17 to be vaccinated after WHO’s approval: Minister The five officials grilled on Monday are Deputy Managers of Savar area Anisuzzman and Abdul Mannan, Manager of Private Branch of Establishment Division Hasibur Rahman, Compnay Secretary of Corporate Division Mahmudur Rob and Manager of Corotion Control Division Abu Bakkar Siddqur Rahman A total of 30 officials and employees of Titas Gas officials of Titas gas recorded their statements on August 23 in first phases. READ: ACC goes slow on NID scam case raising questions over its anti-graft drive The ACC informed that the rest of the employees will be quizzed from September 6 to September 8.