The recent gas crisis has affected nearly every part of daily life. Kitchen stoves struggle to hold a flame, CNG drivers queue for hours at filling stations and commuters pay higher fares. A fall in gas pressure has created a chain of disruptions, affecting how people cook, travel, work and manage their expenses.

The crisis intensified in late July after a terminal was damaged. Although it has since resumed partial operations, the shortage continues to affect households, restaurants and factories across the country.

Inside homes, the shortage has forced families to rearrange their routines.

Shirine Zaman, a homemaker, said low gas pressure was nothing new, but it had recently become intolerable. Gas is now often available only around midnight.

“I have to stay awake and wait. Cooking takes much longer because the flame is so weak,” she shared. “My children sometimes have to leave without breakfast,” Zaman said.

Whenever the supply returns late at night, she tries to cook enough for the entire next day. Her household has also started relying more on electric stoves and, on some days, on outside food or delivery. Consequently, their monthly electricity bill is rising, adding extra pressure on middle-class household budgets.

Hotels and eateries are facing similar difficulties. Afzal Hasan, manager of a local hotel, explained that LPG cylinders were previously kept as a backup for pipeline gas but have now become the kitchen’s main fuel source. The shift has slowed service and pushed daily fuel costs sharply higher, shrinking margins.

Demand, however, has not fallen. “We cannot prepare the same number of meals as before, and customers have to wait longer,” he shared. According to Hasan, more people are asking about meals or placing orders because they cannot cook at home. Yet the hotel’s slower kitchen cannot serve everyone.

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The crisis is also hitting transport workers who depend on compressed natural gas to earn their livelihoods. Drivers now spend hours in long lines at filling stations, watching their working hours slip away before they can even pick up their passengers.

Sujan Khan, a CNG driver in his 50s, left home at six in the morning and visited three filling stations in one day. He managed to buy only Tk 150 worth of gas in total. “I can’t even earn enough to pay the daily deposit,” he expressed in frustration.

For Ramiz Bepari, another CNG driver, refuelling time has stretched from 20–30 minutes to as long as three or four hours. Even after waiting, he sometimes receives only between Tk 20 and Tk 50 worth of gas before having to queue elsewhere. “During that time, I could have completed at least two or three more trips,” he explained.

For passengers, the shortage means longer waits and higher fares.

Mantika Binte Mansur, a university student, shared that she now waits 20 to 30 minutes for rides she previously found within 5 to 10 minutes. On one recent morning, she waited almost an hour while several drivers cancelled her requests or refused to go to her destination. Drivers demanded up to Tk 350 for a journey that normally costs around Tk 200.

“I now try to leave home around 30 minutes earlier,” Mansur added. Sometimes, she uses a ride-sharing bike because finding a CNG or car takes too long. Even then, she has sometimes been 15 to 20 minutes late for class.

Gas pressure may gradually improve as the damaged terminal returns to full operation, but the consequences will not disappear at the same pace. The ripple effect touches almost every corner of urban life. For those who have lost income, sleep and working hours, the crisis has shown how quickly a disruption in supply can unsettle everyday life.