Hey! Who turned off the...? Oh wait, they were already off.

According to the New Nation ("Bangladesh's Independent News Source,"), Bangladesh's energy demand is about 5500 MW per day, but only 3000-3500 MW are generated.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/artman/publish/article_36185.shtml

OK so bla bla bla megawatts bla bla bla on-grid generation bla bla bla coal reserves. What it means for the day-to-day in Dhaka:

• Blackouts for an hour about four times a day. Our office has a generator, thank goodness, so lights and internet stay on but the AC conks out.
• All stores - grocery stores - everything, close at 7 PM by government decree. They stop letting people in at about 6:40, and guards are at the door to make sure no one can get in.
• No streetlights at night. Anywhere. Last night I had dinner with a friend from Dhaka who says that it's been like that since she could remember.

I'm pretty sure it's worse out in the rural areas, where a bunch of people are off-grid anyway. I've been really fortunate to stay and work in places that have generators - what could be totally insanity (and heat stroke)-inducing, is just a minor inconvenience and makes it feel like more of an adventure.