Production in garment factories in major industrial hubs has been hampered over the last three days due to stoppage of gas supply from CNG stations. In the absence of supply from the main lines, the garment makers in Savar, Ashulia and Gazipur were running their units by diverting gas from CNG stations, said Siddiqur Rahman, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. But in the last three days, that has stopped, he said, adding that the sector might not reach its target of hitting $50 billion in exports by 2021 if the gas crisis continues.“We hope that the government will supply gas with adequate pressure to factories soon so that production is not hampered,” Rahman said at the BGMEA-BUFT Journalism Fellowship award at the BGMEA auditorium in DhakaHe also touched upon the corporate tax rate of 20 percent for the sector. “The rate is very high. The government should reduce the corporate tax to 10 percent if we want to attract fresh investment in the garment sector. ”Rahman also complained that the garment makers are becoming victims of harassments in case of trade licence renewal as some officials demand bribes from them.Similarly, some officials in the government’s customs department also harass the garment makers.We are becoming the victims of unnecessary harassment in almost every government office. If you do not stop the harassment, we will stop garment business in Bangladesh.”Rahman said 35 garment factories have already been certified by the US Green Building Council, while another 150 are waiting to receive their green certification from the agency. Foreigners are taking away billions of dollars from Bangladesh every year in the absence of local experts in the sector, he said, adding that the BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology has been producing a lot of skilled manpower to fill in the gap of mid-level technical people“It is true that if the factory owners do not get the gas timely, they will not be able to reach the target of exporting $50 billion of garment items by 2021,” said Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed. Ahmed suggested the BGMEA leasers find a way to seek a review of the decision of demolishing the BGMEA building as the Supreme Court has already gave a verdict.Primarily, he was annoyed with the factory inspections by the Accord and Alliance and after the completion of primary inspection they found less than 2 percent of the factories to be risky. This year, six journalists from print, electronic and radio media received the BGMEA-BUFT Journalism Fellowship. Each awardee received Tk 1 lakh as the fellowship prize.
