The government will distribute 2.65 crore power-saving bulbs for free among the rural poor before the upcoming irrigation season. The process of procuring the bulbs at a cost of $ 38 million, provided by the World Bank, has already started, state minister for power Md Enamul Haque said on Tuesday.

"The use of the bulbs will save 350 megawatt of power in rural areas which will be distributed during irrigation," he told reporters after a meeting on import and supply of energy-saving bulbs at the Secretariat. Haque said they had already invited tender for importing 1.05 crore bulbs at a cost of $ 15 million in the first phase. These bulbs would be disbursed in February-March, he said. In second phase, bids would be invited for a further 1.60 crore bulbs at a cost of $ 23 million, the minister said.

The bulbs would be distributed through the Rural Electrfication Board, Power Development Board, Dhaka Electric Supply Company, Dhaka Power Distribution Company and other organisations. The families that use at least two bulbs can collect the bulbs by submitting their last electricity bill and two active bulbs. The prime minister's adviser to the ministry, Toufique-e-Elahi Chowdhury, said Bangladesh is the first country to take such scheme of supplying bulbs.

-bdnews