Frequent load shedding and 'ghost bills' in Netrokona

Frequent load-shedding and “ghost bills” have left Netrakona residents struggling to cope in the sweltering heat. From sleepless nights to sick livestock, the crisis has hit the district’s rural areas the hardest.

In villages across Netrakona’s 10 upazilas, electricity supply barely lasts four to five hours a day, sometimes even less, according to locals.

“We get four to five hours of electricity throughout the day. At night, we rely on candles and hand fans,” said Kharnai union chairman Obidul Haque.

Saiful Arif Jewel, a journalist from Mohanganj, said, “Last night, we didn’t even have three hours of electricity. My children couldn’t sleep.”

The crisis has also affected livelihoods. “Cows become agitated in the heat. We fetch water from the pond to cool them,” said Mahmudul Hasan Fahim, a dairy farmer from Amtala.

Traders reported losses due to prolonged outages. Schools and nurseries are also struggling.

Roman Khan, a Kendua resident and nursery school director, said children’s education is being severely disrupted by frequent load-shedding.

Locals also complained of receiving inflated monthly bills despite the inadequate power supply.

“No one seems to care about Khaliajuri, and rural people can’t even raise their voices,” said Niramay Sarkar, a bank official from Shyampur village.

Netrakona Palli Bidyut Samiti General Manager Md Akram Hossain said the district’s peak demand is 157MW, but only 60-66MW is being supplied. Around 40,000 meters across the district are faulty, worsening billing chaos.

In Kendua upazila, the worst-hit area, power supply is less than half the demand. “Against 21MW demand, we get only 10-11MW. We had to shut down four of nine feeders,” said Deputy General Manager Md Omar Faruk, adding that nearly 8,000 faulty meters are awaiting replacement.

Authorities said the power crisis stems from reduced production at the Mymensingh Maona power station.