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Power Plants

10-yr jail for subversive activities

Staff Correspondent
The cabinet yesterday approved in principle the draft of The Power Act-2016 that seeks to jail offenders for a maximum of 10 years and fine Tk 10 crore for damaging power establishments by carrying out subversive activities.
The approval came at the weekly cabinet meeting at the secretariat with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said the proposed law carries the maximum jail term or fine or both for destroying or damaging power establishments like power stations, sub-stations, power lines and electricity poles. The minimum jail term has been set at seven years.
According to a proposal of the draft law, a new institution named Independent System Operator (ISO) would be set up to operate the country's power transmission network in a coordinated manner, he added.
An individual would be handed a maximum jail term of three years or fined double the price of electricity consumed or fined Tk 50,000 for using electricity through illegal connections, said the secretary.
In case of industrial or commercial establishments, the maximum punishment for the same offence would be five years' jail or a fine of double the price of electricity consumed or a fine ofTk 1 lakh.
Shafiul said taking sub-connections of electricity without prior permission of the authorities concerned would also be considered as a punishable offence. In such cases, the person providing electricity through subconnections would be punished with a jail sentence of two years or fine of up to Tk 10 lakh or both.
Besides, the person taking a subconnection would be sentenced to three years imprisonment and fined Tk 10,000.
Under the proposed law, an intelligence cell would be formed to identify and check theft and misuse of electricity.
At the meeting, a few ministers suggested that there should be a provision in the proposed law to allow employees of power companies to form trade unions. The PM assured her cabinet colleagues of considering the matter.
PM CRITICISES BNP COMMITTEE
During an unscheduled discussion after the meeting, Hasina blasted the BNP high command for incorporating several family members of war criminals and August 21 grenade attack case accused into the party's new central committee, meeting sources said.
Raising the issue at the meeting, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quadersaid he has learnt that positions of two standing committee members have been kept vacant for the wives of the BNP chiefs two sons.
Referring to the wife of Tarique Rahman, the premier said she is at least an educated woman and it would be good if educated people join politics.
About the Rajuk's ongoing eviction drives, the PM directed Housing and Public Works Minister Mosharraf Hossain to ensure that there is no hotel and restaurants in the residential areas. She said such businesses can be set up on major roads, but not in residential areas.