Aggrieved locals on Sunday took to the streets, blocking roads, including the Dhaka-Tangail highway, and forming human chains in protest against frequent power cuts amid a heatwave sweeping parts of Bangladesh.

They said that weeks of power crisis had brought them out of home and that they could no longer bear the suffering in blistering heat even after paying extra for power, the price of which was recently increased.

The demonstration in Tangail that lasted from  11:30am to 12:30pm disrupted traffic on the highway, which is the gateway to northern Bangladesh, resulting in lengthy traffic jams in both directions and causing significant hardship to commuters, reported New Age correspondent in Tangail.

Inhabitants from across the district joined the protest, some of them alleging that power cuts lasted more than 12 hours in phases. The crowd included students, businessmen, people of other professions, and ordinary folks.

Power department officials had to go down to the street to promise a quick solution to the problem.

After their assurance, the agitating crowd withdrew the blockade, leading to the resumption of traffic movement.

The protesters warned that they would be back soon if the problem was not solved.

The Power Grid of Bangladesh on Sunday reported 3,431MW of power shortage at 2:00am, when the demand was 16,504MW against a supply of 13,073MW.

The average power shortage remained around 2,000MW throughout the day.

The Bangladesh Meteorological Department said that a mild heatwave was sweeping the districts of Dhaka, Tangail, Rajshahi, Pabna, Chuadanga, and Kushtia.

The maximum temperature in Tangail was recorded to be 36C. Dhaka recorded the same maximum temperature. Bangladesh’s highest maximum temperature of 36.8C was recorded in Rajshahi.

New Age correspondent in Rajshahi reported that people in Bagmara stopped a Rural Electrification Board publicity vehicle that was campaigning to raise awareness about load-shedding, expressing anger over prolonged power outages in the area.

According to witnesses, the vehicle was explaining that the power cuts were the result of a gap between power production and supply and urged calm.

The announcements also requested that shops be closed by 9:00pm to help reduce electricity consumption during the ongoing power shortage.

The vehicle was stopped near a petrol pump at Mochmoil Bazar under Shubhodanga union parishad at about 5:30pm.

 Asaduzzaman, general manager of the Bhabaniganj regional office of Natore Palli Bidyut Samity-1, said that he had not yet received any official report about the incident.

He said that consumers, exhausted by recurring power outages, might have reacted out of frustration.

Md Fakhrul Alam, general manager of Natore Palli Bidyut Samity-1, said that the area was receiving only 58 to 70 megawatts of electricity during daytime against a demand for about 120 megawatts.

New Age correspondent in Barishal reported that people from all walks of life formed a human chain in Jhalokathi to protest against acute power shortage.

The human chain was held in front of the Jhalokathi Press Club around Sunday noon.

At that time, they demanded that effective measures be taken to ensure uninterrupted power supply and efforts to curb power sector irregularities.

The speakers said that for the past few weeks frequent load-shedding had been going on day and night across the district.

The protesters reminded that children and elderly people were bearing the brunt of the power cuts.

The BMD said that the maximum day temperature remained above 30C all over the country while the humidity level in the air in Dhaka was recorded to be 69 per cent at 6:00pm.

Meanwhile, power energy and mineral resources minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood on Sunday told the Jatiya Sangsad that electricity generation fell by nearly 3,000MW due to technical faults and disruptions in the coal supply chain because of rough weather.

He added that one power plant had been forced to shut down after a leak developed in its boiler tube, while a unit at a coal-fired power plant remained out of operation as coal could not be supplied.

The minister said that he had discussed the situation with leader of the opposition Shafiqur Rahman and described it as a national crisis.