DHAKA: Shop owners seek to do after-hours business to cash in on a buying binge during the upcoming Ramadan, the month of fast and festivals.  

Leaders of the Shop Owners Association in Dhaka Tuesday urged the government to allow them to keep their shops open after the 8pm deadline during Ramadan.  

If power supply goes off after 8pm as per the government arrangement for managing power shortages, they would run their businesses using generators of their own, they said.  

The association leaders, however, pledged not to illuminate any market in the evening. Also, they assured turning on fewer number of lights in the shops during the peak hours for saving power.

 The decision was taken in a meeting between the leaders of the Shop Owners Association and Power Division here with Power Secretary Abul Kalam Azad in the chair.

State Minister for Power Enamul Haque, PDB Chairman ASM Alamgir Kabir, Managing Director of DPDC FM Faridul Haque and Association president Amir Hossain were among others present at the meeting.

Amir Hossain said, “We told the meeting that we can cooperate with the government when we’re informed about the present power situation. For this reason, we should be informed about the overall power situation every three months.”  

Hossain also said that closing the shops at night causes huge loss to the businessmen as the month of Ramadan is the prime time of their business.

The shop owners informed there are over 25 lakh shops in the country and nearly 4 crore people depend on the businesses.

They also made a strong plea for disconnecting all illegal power connections to make do with the meager power in the grid.

BDST: 2035 HRS, AUG 03, 2010