Parliamentary committee asks Pragati to examine joint-venture electric vehicle production

The parliamentary standing committee on government institutions has advised state-owned vehicle assembler Pragati Industries Limited to examine whether electric vehicles can be produced in the country through joint investment. The company has been asked to present a specific proposal at the committee's next meeting.

The directive was given at the committee's meeting held at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban on Thursday. A press release from the Parliament Secretariat said the initiative should be taken in line with the government's electric vehicle (EV) policy.

The meeting discussed the financial condition, profits and losses, reopening of closed factories and future development plans of institutions under the Bangladesh Steel and Engineering Corporation (BSEC), the Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation (BSFIC) and the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC).

The committee recommended that institution-wise action plans be taken to identify the causes of losses at BSEC enterprises and reduce them. It also stressed resolving ownership and legal complications at long-closed factories, making proper use of unused land and assets, and examining the possibility of restarting those factories.

According to the release, the meeting also discussed reopening closed BSFIC sugar mills, increasing sugarcane production and encouraging farmers to grow sugarcane. As domestic sugar production is lower than national demand, emphasis was placed on raising the mills' production capacity and reducing import dependence.

Reviewing the activities of BSCIC's 84 industrial estates, the committee directed that a detailed report identifying the problems and causes at plots where production is stopped or not running at the desired level be presented at the next meeting.

The meeting was chaired by committee chairman and Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni. Committee members Whip Miah Nuruddin Ahmed Apu, Whip Md. Akhtaruzzaman Mia, Mosa. Tahsina Rushdir, Khondkar Abu Ashfaq, Mohammad Kaysar Ahmed, Biswas Jahangir Alam, Mustafizur Rahman Bhuiyan and Mohammad Kamal Hossain also took part.