Desk Report
The country’s first fully automated autogas filling station promises to provide much relief to private car owners. Unlike regular refueling stations, this particular pump will not give drivers and others the scope to produce false or fabricated gas bills.
Nasrul Hamid, Minister of State for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, will inaugurate on Sunday the first fully automated LPG filling station set up jointly by the state-owned Meghna Petroleum Limited and DS Business Point, a private company. “We have used very high quality instruments to prevent any kind of tampering of bills. If anyone tries to tamper with a bill, the machine will not function and gas supply will stop automatically,” Istak Ahmmed Shimul, a board director of Meghna Petroleum, said about the distinctive features of the filling station.
There have been widespread allegations of bill forgery and preparation of false bills relating to gas refueling at regular filling stations. Drivers commit such crimes with the help of station employees to earn extra bucks, forcing vehicle owners to cough up additional expenses for using the vehicles.
Set up on Meghna Petroleum land at 1-3 Motijheel Commercial Area, the DS LPG Autogas has been in operation for nearly two months on a trial basis.
The pump has mass flow meters costing around Tk 12 lakh each which are nearly four times higher than the regular ones. “These meters ensure automated computerized billing. That means a bill is prepared only when gas is pumped into a vehicle. So, vehicle owners do not need to think about presenting false bills without gas refueling,” Shimul added while speaking to The Asian Age yesterday.
There are nearly half a dozen autogas filling stations in Dhaka city, with several hundred others in the pipeline due to the convenient availability of LPG gas. “You may travel between 380km and 450km by filling your car once with 60 litters, 90 litters or 120 litters of LPG gas,” he said, stressing that one may use one’s car for a week with a single refilling if one does not go on a long drive.