Frequently Asked Questions

Load Shedding Bangladesh is an independent, community-driven power cut and load-shedding tracker for Bangladesh. People report when the electricity goes and comes back for their post code, and everyone can see live status, recent reports and history – plus planned shutdowns from the utilities' official notices on the same map, and the right hotline to call.

Load shedding (লোডশেডিং) is a planned, rotating power cut: when there is not enough electricity for everyone, the utilities switch feeders off in turn, usually for an hour or more. People in Bangladesh also call any power cut বিদ্যুৎ বিভ্রাট (bidyut bibhrat – electricity disruption) or বিদ্যুৎ চলে যাওয়া (bidyut chole jawa – the electricity going off). Whatever you call it, search your post code to see if neighbours are reporting it and whether a shutdown was announced.

First check whether it is only your home: look at your meter, prepaid balance and main switch, and ask a neighbour. If the whole area is off, report it here in one tap so others know, check the load shedding schedule for a planned shutdown, and call your utility or 16999 for a fault. Switch off ACs, fridges and pumps so the voltage surge does not damage them when the electricity comes back.

Search your post code, thana or district, or tap the location button. The page shows live reports from neighbours and any planned shutdown published for your area. The load-shedding schedule page shows every planned shutdown on a map for the next 7 days, with a link to each official notice.

From the shutdown notices (বিদ্যুৎ সরবরাহ বন্ধের বিজ্ঞপ্তি) that DPDC, DESCO, NESCO, WZPDCL, BPDB, BREB, the Palli Bidyut Samitis and Power Grid Bangladesh publish on their websites. Our system reads them several times a day in Bangla or English, works out the date, time and area and puts them on the map. Notices published only as images or on Facebook cannot be read automatically – always check the official notice.

Load shedding (লোডশেডিং) happens when there is not enough electricity for everyone, so utilities switch feeders off in turn. A planned shutdown is a few hours' switch-off for maintenance, tree cutting, pole or transformer work, announced in advance. A fault is an unplanned cut – a storm, burnt transformer or tripped line.

16999 is the Power Division's unified complaint line and reaches every utility. You can also call your own utility: DPDC 16116, DESCO 16120, NESCO 16603, WZPDCL 16117, BPDB 16200, Palli Bidyut 16899. Keep your customer/account number ready. For a fallen line, fire or electric shock call 999.

Your electricity bill or prepaid meter card names it. In general: south Dhaka – DPDC; north Dhaka, Tongi and Purbachal – DESCO; towns of Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions – NESCO; towns of Khulna and Barishal divisions and greater Faridpur – WZPDCL; towns in the Chattogram, Cumilla, Mymensingh and Sylhet zones – BPDB; rural areas everywhere – your Palli Bidyut Samity. Our post code pages show the most likely utility, but borders are approximate.

Open your post code page and tap “Power is out” when the electricity goes and “Power is back” when it returns. It is anonymous and takes two taps. Please also call your utility – this site does not notify them.

The status reflects what people have reported recently. Reports from more people on different networks, and more recent reports, give a higher confidence score. Reports can be incomplete or wrong, so treat them as signals, not official utility data.

If nobody reports “Power is back” and there are no new power cut reports for 24 hours, the power cut is closed automatically. A new report reopens it straight away.

No. It only means no one has reported recently. Coverage depends on people in your area using the service.

No. Load Shedding Bangladesh is not affiliated with the Power Division, BPDB, BREB, any distribution utility or Palli Bidyut Samity, or BERC. For restoration times and safety issues, contact your utility or call 16999.

Keep well back, assume every fallen line is live, and never touch it or anything it is touching – including water, a tin roof, a fence or a vehicle. Warn others, then call 999 or your utility's hotline. During floods, stay away from poles and transformers.

When the Bangladesh Meteorological Department raises a danger signal, utilities in coastal areas often switch the supply off to prevent accidents, and storms bring lines down. Charge phones, power banks and your IPS early, store drinking water, and listen to cyclone warnings (call 1090 free). Our pages show active GDACS cyclone and flood alerts.

An unopened fridge keeps food cold for about 4 hours, a full freezer for about 48 hours and a half-full freezer for about 24 hours. In Bangladesh heat, cooked food spoils quickly – throw away fish, meat, milk and cooked rice that have been warm for more than 2 to 4 hours.

Run generators only outdoors, away from doors and windows – exhaust fumes can kill. Have an electrician fit a changeover switch; never back-feed a generator into house wiring. Keep IPS batteries in a ventilated place and top up distilled water in tubular batteries.

Residential customers pay a step tariff set by BERC: the first 75 units at the first-step price, units 76–200 at a higher price and so on, plus a demand charge per kW of sanctioned load and 5% VAT. Lifeline customers using 50 units or less pay the lowest rate for every unit. Our electricity bill calculator does the maths.

No. Reporting is anonymous. We do not ask for your name, phone number or address. See the Privacy Policy for details.

To keep the data clean, each device can report the same post code once every few minutes.

999 for police, fire service and ambulance (also fallen lines and electric shock); 16999 for any electricity utility; Fire Service 16163; disaster and cyclone warnings 1090; National Call Centre 333; health advice Shastho Batayon 16263; Titas Gas emergency 16496. See the Emergency numbers page for your division.

Use the contact form (link in the footer) for questions, bug reports, corrections to a phone number or notice, or partnership enquiries.