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Unrest to hit RMG exports
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“But the shipment of value-added garments will see the most difficulty,” the official added.
Bakhtiar Uddin Ahmed, chief operating officer of Fakir Apparels Limited, said his buyers did not cancel any work orders till now as his products are specialised.
He explained that is because it is not possible to quickly shift work orders for specialised products elsewhere as the production of these goods requires specific designs and specialised materials.
Kutubuddin Ahmed, chairman of Envoy Legacy and Sheltech Group, said the unrest has already impacted garment exports as many producers will have to provide discounts and face expensive air shipment alongside shifting of work orders due to delayed production.
The international clothing retailers and brands seek discounts and air shipments from suppliers if the goods are not shipped and received on time, he added.
Md Towhidur Rahman, president of the Bangladesh Apparels Workers Federation, said the unrest is taking place as a certain quarter of people are instigating workers amid the political changeover.
But the workers in some factories have genuine demands, such as ensuring timely payment of their wages and stopping unlawful contract terminations, he added.
Amirul Haque Amin, president of the National Garment Workers Federation, echoed the same while pointing out that workers at several factories have yet to be paid their wages for July.
“This is a major reason for the unrest,” he said.
Amin also said the garment industry has some related businesses, such as for supplying meals and transport to workers as well as selling garment waste from the factories, among others.
But with the regime change, new providers of such services have been vying for control and are often clashing with rival businesses or even the workers, Amin added.
Khandoker Rafiqul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said more than 96 percent of the production units have already reopened as normalcy is being restored gradually.
Only 43 garment factories had not reopened as of yesterday, he added.
Islam informed that during a meeting yesterday, the trade body instructed factory owners to be present at their units in order to give their workers confidence.
Islam said the garment factories were shut for 14 days during the anti-discrimination student movement that culminated in the ouster of the Awami League government led by Sheikh Hasina on August 5.
Now though, the factories were shut for three to four days amid the recent violence.
“The buyers are asking about whether timely shipment of goods can be ensured as they are also worried about production in the factories,” he added.

Adani
FROM PAGE B1
Data of Power Grid Bangladesh PLC shows that Bangladesh was receiving over 1,000MW of electricity from the power plant.
If the payments are delayed further, the power plant may stop running for a shortage of coal and funds and to meet operation and maintenance expenses, stated another concerned PDB official.
If this happens, the PDB will be faced with a power shortage, much like what had happened in the second half of August, he said.
According to him, although the power plant cited technical glitches during that time, it might have actually come about over the dues.
Earlier, Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, adviser to the power, energy and mineral resources ministry, had sought budgetary support from multilateral lenders, including World Bank and Asian Development Bank, several times.
The outstanding import bill of the power and energy sector’s suppliers amounts to around $2.2 billion, he said.