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shortfall at 266MW, followed by Dhaka (244MW), Khulna (189MW), Rajshahi (183MW) and Cumilla (163MW).

Grid data showed electricity supply fell short of demand by about 500MW to 1,800MW for most of the past week.

In Gazipur, residents said power went out every one to one-and-a-half hours, with some areas enduring 10 to 12 hours of load shedding a day.

Abdus Sattar Bhuiyan, owner of Mumtahina Foods and Oils Mill in Sreepur, said repeated power cuts had halved his factory’s mustard processing output in recent weeks.

Foyez Ahmed, administrative manager of SPM Design Limited, said the outages were seriously disrupting production. “We are also being forced to spend extra on fuel to run generators,” he said.

Students also suffered. Maulana Faiz Uddin, a teacher from Gazipur Sadar, said prolonged outages were disrupting his students’ exam preparation.

Last week, residents in Kaliakair blocked the Dhaka-Tangail Highway and later besieged the local electricity office, demanding uninterrupted supply. Officials said the Mouchak and Bannara areas required about 70MW but were receiving only 32MW.

In Savar and Ashulia, residents and industries reported similar experiences.

“Our factory has been facing around three hours of power cuts every day since Eid. We have to depend on generators, which is increasing production costs,” said Md Adam Ali, HR and compliance manager of Nava Knit Composite Ltd.

Monira Dewan Omi, a resident of Bank Colony in Savar, said electricity went off seven to eight times a day.

Officials of Dhaka Palli Bidyut Samity-1 and 3 said they were receiving 20 to 30 percent less electricity than required.

In Mymensingh, officials said supply improved yesterday as higher generation and rainfall reduced demand, although residents in several rural areas still reported outages lasting more than three hours.

In Narayanganj, residents said Palli Bidyut consumers were facing worse load shedding than those served by the Dhaka Power Distribution Company, with frequent nighttime outages becoming routine.

Cumilla continued to face a power deficit of 15 to 20 percent, with rural areas experiencing much longer outages than urban centres.

Kamrul Hasan, a resident of Daudkandi, said his area was experiencing around 10 hours of load shedding every day.

In Khulna, prolonged outages continued to disrupt daily life.

Meghla Mollick, an HSC candidate from Batiaghata, said power cuts every two to three hours over the past week had seriously affected her exam preparation.

According to the Bangladesh Frozen Foods Exporters Association, the electricity shortage had forced many shrimp-processing factories to suspend operations.

“If the aerators stop because of power cuts, the shrimp will suffer. In this intense heat, prolonged outages could wipe out the entire stock,” said shrimp farmer Krishna Biswas.

Residents also complained they could not watch FIFA World Cup matches because of frequent power cuts after sunset.

Mostafizur Rahman Anik of Bagha in Rajshahi, said, “The power goes out several times at night. On top of that, the intense heat makes these sudden outages extremely uncomfortable.”

Zahedur Rahman of Kurigram added, “We get power for one hour and then lose it for two.”

Officials in Rangpur said rainfall reduced demand yesterday, resulting in little or no daytime load shedding, but acknowledged they had implemented 25 to 40 percent load shedding over the previous week because of inadequate supply.

(Our correspondents from the respective districts contributed to this report.)