Load shedding is destroying small businesses and nobody in power seems to care
I run a small tailoring shop in Narayanganj. I have four workers. We make decent money during wedding season and Eid. The rest of the year is tight. This summer, we had load shedding for 8-12 hours a day. My machines run on electricity. No electricity means no work. No work means no income. But rent still comes, workers still need to be paid, suppliers still expect payment. I bought a generator. The fuel cost is eating 30-40% of my profit. I had to let go of one worker. Now I hear people in Dhaka's air-conditioned offices talking about Bangladesh's economic growth. GDP this, investment that. But for those of us running small businesses outside the export sector, the reality is: we are surviving despite the system, not because of it. The big factories get priority power. The small shops and households are the ones sitting in darkness. I am not asking for free electricity. I am asking for consistency. Just tell me honestly when there will be load shedding so I can plan. The randomness is what kills you — you cannot plan production, you cannot promise delivery dates, you cannot run a business on a schedule that changes every day. Is anyone else in the same situation? How are you managing?