Shops and shopping malls to close at 8 pm due to energy crisis

A new decision has been taken to reduce the opening hours of shops and shopping malls to deal with the ongoing energy crisis in the country. From now on, all shops, commercial establishments and shopping malls across the country, including Dhaka, will have to close by 8 pm.

The Bangladesh Shopkeepers' Association gave this information in a notification on Thursday (April 2). The decision was taken at a joint meeting of the organization's standing committee, where the issue of cooperating with the government through energy conservation gained importance.

The notification said that due to the instability in the international energy market, saving electricity and energy has now become urgent. In this context, the decision to close shops and shopping malls earlier is being implemented.

However, some essential service sectors have been kept out of this directive. These include hotels, pharmacies, raw markets and other essential service institutions. These institutions will be able to continue their activities as before.

Those concerned believe that if this decision is implemented, there will be significant savings in electricity and energy consumption and a positive impact on dealing with the current crisis.