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LPG traders withdraw strike after BERC announces 29 Oct public hearing
Daily Sun Report, Dhaka
Published: 15 Oct 2026, 12:00 AM
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) traders have withdrawn their planned two-day nationwide strike after the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) agreed to hold a public hearing on their demand for higher sales commissions on 29 October.
Md Selim Khan, president of the LPG Gas Traders Welfare Association, confirmed the decision, saying the BERC chairman had assured them that their demands would be considered in phases.
He said several meetings had been held with the BERC chairman over the past two days. At the latest meeting, around 3:30pm on Wednesday, the commission agreed to hold the hearing at 10am on 29 October. The strike had been scheduled for 15 and 16 October.
Earlier on Wednesday, Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood and Commerce Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir urged LPG operators and traders to withdraw the strike at a meeting at the Secretariat.
Mahmood warned that the government would take strict legal action if traders disrupted supplies of LPG, an essential commodity, to press their demands.
“If anyone tries to enforce a strike over an essential commodity at a time like this, we will apply the law enacted in 1956. They cannot call strikes at will to push up prices. This will not be accepted,” he told reporters, referring to the Essential Commodities Act, 1956.
The Bangladesh LPG Traders Co-operative Association had announced the shutdown to protest alleged harassment of traders and demand higher commissions, among other issues.
The Essential Commodities Act, 1956, empowers the government to regulate the production, supply, distribution and trade of essential goods to ensure their availability at fair prices and prevent hoarding and other market irregularities.
Mahmood said the government was working to keep LPG prices affordable amid a global energy crisis triggered by the ongoing war, which has caused fuel prices to fluctuate and made supply sources increasingly uncertain. BERC had been asked to discuss ways to keep prices at a tolerable level for consumers, he said, adding that the government had held three meetings with operators to review their concerns.
Another meeting with LPG operators was scheduled for 30 October to discuss measures to maintain market stability, he added. Muktadir also warned against artificial shortages and disruptions to essential supplies to press business demands. He said uninterrupted supplies of LPG and other essential commodities were vital to millions of people, urging traders to resolve disputes over profits, losses, commissions and other commercial matters through dialogue.
The ministers stressed that traders and suppliers must prioritise public interest and avoid actions that could destabilise markets or cause hardship to consumers.
Senior officials from the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation, BERC and the Department of Explosives, along with representatives of the LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh and leading LPG companies, attended the meeting.