Water purifier system introduced in city

MAR 12: While the local municipalities and civic bodies have failed to supply purified drinking water to the capital, the Canada Bangladesh Trade Promotion Centre (CBTPC), formed by the Bangladeshi expatriates living in Canada, claims that it has brought the world renowned home spring water purifier system to Bangladesh. Invented by the General Electric (GE) of USA, the system is cost effective and easy to install, according to Hasan Jaman, director of CBTPC. It has already been installed in many areas, he said
The local government engineering division (LGED) building in Agargaon area of the capital is one of the places where the system has been installed. ‘Since both the ground and surface water was contaminated here, there was no alternative but to adopt a technologically advanced system to get clean water,’ said Engr Wahidur Rahman, chief engineer of LGED.The water authority could also install this system at the water source, he added.
‘Although this will increase the price of water but people would willingly pay more if they are guaranteed pure drinking water,’ Rahman said.
‘The home spring water purifier removes large particles from source water. This way it automatically flushes impurities down the drain during a pre-selected time each day,’ Hasan told “The Independent” while he added that it can be used in the municipal water sources to get rid of unwanted tastes and odour associated with aesthetic chlorine.

One unit of the purifier costs Tk five lakh and can supply drinking water to about 2,000 people for a period of 20 years, said director of CBTPC. ‘It means a city dweller can get clean water possibly by paying barely Tk 12.5 annually if the system is installed,’ he said.Apart from the municipal source of water, the system can also be installed in large office buidings and condominiums. ‘It doesn”t matter whether a building is supplied ground water or surface water, the homespring purifier will provide crystal clear water to every tap,’ he said.
Tongi Municipality has also installed the system in the municipality building. Advocate Ajmatullah Khan, the municipality Mayor said that they had to go for the system as the water extracted from the ground had become dangerously contaminated.

Meanwhile, Dr Mir Anisuzzaman, advisor of CBTPC said that they will not confine the installation of the purifier to the metropolitan only. Indeed, they have planned to introduce the system in rural areas too. ‘With the help of doner agency, we will subsidized the installation and we would install the system in the rural areas especially in the areas where safe drinking water is a rare phenomenon due to arsenic contamination’, he said.

Source: The Independent

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Source: The Daily Sun

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Source: The Daily Sun

Water, sanitation by 2015 plan finalised
Staff Correspondent

The government has finalised a sector development plan (SDP) to ensure modern drinking water supply system and quality sanitary latrine for all by 2025.

The three-phase SDP (2011-2025) on water and sanitation will be implemented at a proposed expense of Tk 1,50,000 crore.

Most of the money will come from the government sources and from contribution of the people.

Local government division disclosed the plan at a workshop at a city hotel yesterday.

An official of LGD, the department that will implement the project, said everybody will be provided water and latrines within the first phase (2011-15).

During the second phase (2016-20), drinking water and sanitary latrines will be ensured for all.

Modernisation of water supply system and quality latrines like that in the western countries will be done in the third phase (2021-25).

According to the SDP, currently 74 percent people are under Bangladesh basic standard water supply coverage and 80.4 percent under sanitation coverage.

Advocate Md Rahmat Ali, chairman of parliamentary standing committee on LGRD, was the chief guest.

Source: The Daily Star

City turns trash can
Garbage eats into Moghbazar footpath, DCC awaits complaint

DHAKA, MAR 21: While some parts of the capital are looking like a dream city, thanks to the beautification work undertaken by the civic authorities for the cricket World Cup, others stand just as neglected as before the Cup caravan entered the Bangladeshi borders. Take the stretch in front of Cantoon building and near Century Arcade in Moghbazar, for instance: while was once a footpath in its heydays has been turned into a dump yard, with garbage and constriction waste piled on the stretch. As a result, pedestrians have no option but to walk on the main road, with accidents waiting to happen.
Besides the waste dumped by the under-construction Cantoon building, makeshift rickshaw and van repair shops have also made walking on the pavement a nightmare for pedestrians.
Several residents of the locality said the virtual blockade of the footpath with waste forces them to make a detour every day.
Abdul Hamid, a resident of Nayatola who walks from Nayatola to Malibagh every day, said he routinely faces problem while using the footpath. “The restaurant authorities are using the public space to run their business and are violating the basic rights of pedestrians,” he said.
“Since this pavement is near the main road carrying heavy vehicles, people have to tread very carefully,” Abdul Hamid said. “This neglect by the authorities could result in fatal accidents.”
Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) Commissioner Sharmila Imam said the civic body is keeping an eye on the situation. But since no one has yet made a complaint about the issue to the ward commissioner, she said the DCC cannot take any action against the occupiers.
“If people complain to the commissioner’s office about the problem, the authority will take initiative to remove the garbage and take action against people are involved in blocking the road with garbage,” Imam said.
But Samiul Karim, a private university student, said such blatant encroachment of pavement space shows just how casually the authorities look at the rights of the pedestrians. Alam, a local resident, said this main road is used by a large number of people every day and buses, auto-rickshaw and cycle rickshaws use the road at all times of the day. “There are huge chances of accidents due to this pile-up on the sidewalk, Alam said.
Caretaker of Cantoon building Golam Mostafa told ‘The Independent’ that construction waste is being dumped in front of the building since construction work is going on. But, Mostafa added, the wastes are removed from the footpaths every night. “The garbage would be removed from the footpath after two or three days,” he added.

Source: The Independent

PM opens 2 rental power plants today
Unb, Dhaka
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the operation of two newly-built rental power plants and also lay foundation for another one at three separate locations in Narayanganj today.

The two plants which go into operation and are set to be inaugurated by the prime minister are 100MW Shiddhirganj diesel-based rental power plant and the 100MW Madanganj furnace oil-based quick rental power plant.

She will lay foundation stone of the 410MW Haripur combined cycle power plant base-load power plant.

The government has set up the two rental power plants in private sector under a fast-track programme to resolve the nagging power crisis.

Desh Energy, a company owned by former FBCCI president Annisul Haque, has installed the Shiddhirganj 100MW plant under an agreement with the government.

As per agreement, the state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) will purchase electricity from the Siddhirganj diesel-based plant at a rate of Tk 13.32 per unit.

However, the plant was supposed to start commercial operation in November last year. But it failed to do so as per schedule. As a result, the PDB imposed a penalty of about Tk 32 crore on the company, said a power ministry official.

The 100MW furnace oil-based quick rental power plant has been set up by the Summit Group which comes into peration as per schedule. The PDB will purchase electricity from the plant at a rate of Tk 9.75 per unit.

The third plant, the 412MW Haripur combined cycle power plant, for which the premier will lay foundation, will be implemented in the public sector.

State-owned Electricity Generation Company of Bangladesh will implement the scheme. The Japanese Marubeni Corporation will set up the plant as an EPC contractor on a turnkey basis. Japanese donor agency JICA has funded the project.

Source: The Daily Star

272 gas connections cut off
Staff Correspondent
Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd disconnected 272 unauthorised gas connections in Dhaka and its adjacent areas.

A special inspection team identified them visiting 5532 consumers' houses from January 16 to March 8 in Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayangonj and Mymensingh, says a press release.

Punitive measures have taken against those who used gas illegally as per the Gas Distribution Laws

Source: The Daily Star

Water, sanitation by 2015 plan finalised
Staff Correspondent
The government has finalised a sector development plan (SDP) to ensure modern drinking water supply system and quality sanitary latrine for all by 2025.

The three-phase SDP (2011-2025) on water and sanitation will be implemented at a proposed expense of Tk 1,50,000 crore.

Most of the money will come from the government sources and from contribution of the people.

Local government division disclosed the plan at a workshop at a city hotel yesterday.

An official of LGD, the department that will implement the project, said everybody will be provided water and latrines within the first phase (2011-15).

During the second phase (2016-20), drinking water and sanitary latrines will be ensured for all.

Modernisation of water supply system and quality latrines like that in the western countries will be done in the third phase (2021-25).

According to the SDP, currently 74 percent people are under Bangladesh basic standard water supply coverage and 80.4 percent under sanitation coverage.

Advocate Md Rahmat Ali, chairman of parliamentary standing committee on LGRD, was the chief guest.

Source: The Daily Star

No load shedding from next year
Govt eyes surplus power; plans to shut fertiliser factories to divert gas to power

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As rising power demand for irrigation is triggering frequent load shedding, the government has decided to shut down gas-fired fertiliser factories like last year, and divert the gas to many of the country's under-utilised power plants to increase power generation.

"Within the next four-five days, you can expect an additional 400 to 500 megawatt power generation," said Prime Minister's Energy Adviser Dr Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury at a discussion with news media editors in the capital yesterday.

Five factories including Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Ltd (CUFL), and Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company Ltd (Kafco) are being shut down to divert 250 million cubic feet of gas per day (mmcfd) to power plants. Gas supply shortfall has kept 800 megawatt (MW) power off the national grid for the last few years.

However, this addition will not completely end the on-going load shedding which is now spiralling up to 1,000 MW every day.

Within the next two months, new power plants will increase the country's daily power generation up to 5,000 MW from the present 4,000 MW, said Dr Chowdhury at the discussion arranged by Information Minister Abul Kalam Azad. The programme was also participated by parliamentarians, and high officials of power and energy ministries and related organisations.

By the end of this year, the power generation capacity will increase to 6,000 MW, while the ever rising demand will hit 6,800 MW. But the government is hopeful that next year its efforts in power sector will result in generation exceeding the demand.

Although since coming to power, the government has brought into operation dozens of power plants -- the country is still reeling under a power crisis. Power outages have been taking place in the cities from early this month as the government has been diverting more power for irrigation at night.

During the corresponding period last year, the government shut down all gas-based fertiliser factories to minimise load shedding which had sharply increased due to power-based irrigation. This year, irrigation demands have increased by eight percent. Irrigation alone will require 1,400 MW power.

Power Development Board (PDB) Chairman ASM Alamgir Kabir explained at the discussion why, even after the Awami League-led government added 1,400 MW new power in the last two years, the country has not been producing more than 4,000 MW power in general.

He said the country's gas production did not increase on the one hand, and on the other, more than a half of the country's power plants are very old and inefficient. These realities have been holding back the progress made in the power sector so far.

He noted that the government shifted its focus from natural gas as primary fuel, due to a gas crisis. Now the government is diversifying its fuel sources, and looking at coal, nuclear and liquid fuel as alternatives.

The PDB chairman pointed out that electricity demands have been rising from new avenues. In recent years, battery operated tricycles have become so popular across the country that their number has gone up to three to four lakhs. These vehicles demand 300 to 350 MW power.

Earlier while making a presentation, he said last year, gas was responsible for 89 percent of power generation, and liquid fuel 5 percent. As the government has shifted its focus to liquid fuel as a short term and quick solution to power generation, presently gas represents 83 percent of the source of power, and liquid fuel 10 percent.

He gave a progress report of more than a dozen power projects under implementation and said in the following four years, the country could expect to add roughly 2,000 MW power each year. In the near future, one third of the country's power will be derived from coal as it is very cost effective. Therefore, it is very important for the country to further develop its own coal resources.

"We have signed 34 deals for 3,317 megawatt so far [from January 2009], of which power projects of 2,600 megawatt are under implementation. In the next six months we hope to sign 36 more deals for another 5,000 megawatt power," Kabir noted.

Side by side with new power generation projects, the government has also been working on huge transmission line works to evacuate power to be generated in Bibiyana, Bhola, and Sylhet, as well as on cross-border power import.

Kabir pointed out that alongside these investments, the power supply cost is set to increase. The cost is now Tk 3.62 per kilowatt hour, which will go up to Tk 4.99 per kilowatt hour in the next two years, necessitating a power tariff adjustment.

Dr Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury noted, "We are going to bring into operation 3,000 megawatt power this year [since 2009] -- which required an investment of 3 billion US dollars. In contrast, the whole BNP regime produced just one 80 megawatt power plant. This reflects the level of initiatives taken by this government. No other government had taken such a big initiative before."

Energy Secretary Abul Kalam Azad pointed out, from 1990 the power sector grew at an annual rate of 7 percent on an average -- which was much behind the required rate of 10 percent (as required by the GDP growth rate). That left the country with a 40 percent deficit. In 2010 the power sector growth was 10 percent. The government is hoping in the next one year the growth will mark a rise by 30 to 40 percent.

Source: The Daily Star

Tech for clean water

Dhaka, Apr 25: An end to indiscriminate digging of Dhaka’s streets is in offing as the Dhaka Water Supply and sewerage Authority (DWASA) would start the project work of a ‘no-dig’ or trench-less pipeline-setting scheme involving a cost of Tk 146.5 crore for water supply in the capital within the next two weeks. About 3,000 kilometres of water lines in the city will be replaced with new leak-proof pipes gradually and it will ensure cleaner water to city people, DWASA sources said adding that the Dhaka people has long been complaining about the stinky, dirty water supplied by the water authorities which in reality is caused by the existing dilapidated and old pipelines.
The initial project zones has already been zeroed down to zone-8 (Baridhara) and Zone-9 (Uttara), DWASA sources said adding that National Construction Limited, a local company got the tender for the project works by bidding in an international tender process.
With the summer looming, the digging of Dhaka’s street has long become a common sight to the city dwellers as the DWASA manually removes the clogging in the pipeline, created due to low water pressure and water evaporation because of extreme heat.
But the DWASA official said that the implementation of the project titled ‘Dhaka Water Supply Development Project’ for installing underground water pipelines in the trench-less system will put and end to this seasonal hassle.
The DWASA official also said that it would put an end to pipe leakage and cross-connection of sewer and water lines-the twin-problems blamed for piping filthy and stinky water by the Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA).
Talking with The Independent, deputy managing director (DMD) of DWASA said that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) are jointly financing the project under which the rehabilitation of water-supply management, extension and strengthening of network, reducing system loss and improving the quality of water in Dhaka city will be done.
He said the feasibility study and design of the trench-less pipe line system has already been carried out through two pilot projects in two places — old Elephant Road and Gulshan Road No 103 have been carried out from April, 2009 and the pilot projects were proven to be a success.
Explaining the benefit of the trench-less system DMD of DWASA said that the water supply authority add chemicals to the water supply to purify the water. These chemical additives - mainly chloramines erodes the pipe wall, eventually creating pinhole leaks which result in broken pipes if undetected.
The chlorine interaction with metal pipe causes heavy metals to leach into a system’s water supply, he said adding that the barrier coating in the trench-less system would solve this problem by preventing future pipe corrosion and water flow problems caused by corroded pipes.
Terming trench-less or ‘no-dig’ system as the most modern system for water supply in the world, Prof Dr Jamilur Reza Chowdhury, former vice-chancellor of BRAC University welcomed the initiative of the DWASA.
The traditional year’s old prevailing ‘open-cut’ system in installing water pipelines created problems for the Dhaka dwellers, Prof Chowdhury said. The trench-less pipe-lining system restores repairs and renews corroded piping systems without the costly expense and disruption of traditional pipe repair and replacement, he added.

Source: The Independent