Protests across northern region

Just after the announcement of the fuel price hike by the government, people immediately rushed to the patrol pumps across the northern region for a chance to get their vehicle tanks full. But due to the huge rush, most of them had to return home without getting the required quantity of fuel.

People who failed to fill up their vehicle tanks started protesting in front of several petrol pumps in the region.

Earlier on Friday night, issuing a circular, the government raised prices of all types of fuel with immediate effect from 12:01am Saturday.

According to local sources, commoners and motorcyclists in Rangpur Friday night held a protest putting barricades on the road at Shapla intersection in the city as the filling stations stopped selling gasoline due to the sudden rise in demand. Police, however, brought the situation under control and cleared the road later.

After hearing the news of the ensuing fuel price hike, hundreds of people including the bikers thronged the various filling stations in the city to buy fuel before the new rates came into effect.

But the filling station owners stopped selling fuel causing fury among the people and leading the bikers to go for protest.

Later in the morning, hundreds of bikers gathered in front of Shapla intersection in the city and blocked the prime road demanding fuel at previous prices and withdrawal of the new fixation.

Biker Rabbi Hossain said the petrol pump owners stopped selling gasoline around 10:30pm hearing the price hike effective after 12am.

Another protester Mokbul Hossain said the filling station owners denied selling fuel before the new price comes to be effective aiming to make a double profit. They went on protest as the administration remained silent and did not take measures. Citizen for Good Governance (SUJON) Rangpur city unit president Khandoker Faqrul Anam Benju said the filling station owners of the Rangpur division made a syndicate of illegal profit sharing around Tk 200 crore to put aside their previous stock of fuel stopping selling from 10pm Friday in order to sell at higher prices.

When asked, the Manager of Shapla Filling Station of the city, Azizur Rhaman denied the allegations brought against them. Rangpur Kotowali Metropolitan police station SI Rafiqul Islam said on hearing the protest, police rushed to the spot and cleared the road after convincing the protestors.

Meanwhile, the bus owners have hiked the transport fares Saturday morning with the rising in fuel price.

Noresh Chandra, Manager Agomoni Paribhan said, “We set the new ticket price of Rangpur to Dhaka due to fuel price hike. We charged the AC bus ticket Tk 1,500 from Saturday against the previous rate of Tk 1,300.

Shawn Ahamed, a supervisor of SR Travels at Kamarpara bus station said, “We are selling non-AC bus tickets at Tk 740 against the previous rate of Tk 700 for Dhaka.”

Mozzamel Haque, president of the Rangpur Transport Owners Association said, “We have no alternative of increasing the bus fare amid the situation.”

Abul Khair Masum, 35, a school teacher of the city said the government has hiked fuel prices above fifty per cent. Prices of daily necessities and transport costs will increase further creating troubles and burdens for the commoners as the salary and wages of the commoners have not yet been revised.

A farmer, Afzal Hossain, 65, of Imadpur village under Mithapukur upazila of the district said, “It is very tough for the farmers to afford the agriculture production cost due to price hike of fertiliser and fuel”

Senior Coordinator (Agriculture & Environment), RDRS Bangladesh, Mamunur Rashid said the region is a surplus food production-prone area across the country. The government hiked prices of urea fertiliser by 37.5 per cent against the previous prices and the latest fuel price hike above fifty per cent will definitely reduce the crop production in the region. Many of the farmers have also suffered losses in crop production due to recurring floods this year. The price spiral situation will further discourage the farmers from intensive cropping patterns in the region.

In Rajshahi, After the news of diesel, petrol and octane price hike started circulating through social media, panic ensued as people rushed to the nearest filling station around 10:30 pm on Friday.

However, many filling stations in the district were already locked down by then. Some waited in lines for hours but failed to buy any fuel. As panic and anger spread among the waiting drivers the police had to get involved to bring the situation under control.

Shariful Islam, a resident of the Talaimari area of Rajshahi city, said he rushed to the nearby filling station after finding out about the price hike. He stood in line for about 1 hour and collected Tk 300 worth of fuel.

Chapainawabganj motorcyclist Jewel Rana said he bought Tk 200 worth of fuel after standing in line for a long time.

Tapas Kumar of Naogaon’s Atrai upazila and Champak of Joupurhat Sadar upazila said they stood in line for hours at night but could not buy any fuel. Even after midnight, there were long lines in the filling stations.

Zamir Ali, a farmer of Pabna Sadar upazila said he went to buy diesel for his tractor. But due to the long queue of motorbikes, buses, trucks, microbuses, and private cars in front of the filling station he had to return empty-handed.

Abdul Majid of Natore’s Bagatipara upazila, and chairman of the Consumer Rights Protection Upazila Committee, said he recently bought a motorcycle for commute convenience but is now worried about being able to afford fuel.

He also said the prices of daily commodities have been unbridled for quite some time now. The price of green chilli, a kitchen essential, is about Tk 250 per kg. The prices of all products, from food to other daily necessities are on the rise.