Maria

14 , reads in class six, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Writer and Photographer: Fabeha Monir

My final examination will start this week. I can study well at night.

When I was in class four, I had bad results during the final exam time because there was a shortage of electricity supply and I could not study due to that. During that time, every day, there was two hours of load shedding at day and night. We had to light candles at night to study.

I have two siblings; I am the eldest and I have two younger brothers. Two of them also go to school. In the last couple of years, our life has improved a lot. Our roads and highways have developed. Lifestyle and quality of living has improved. New educational institutes have been built. We also have more recreational opportunities.

I would like to become a doctor when I grow up and finish my education. I would like to serve my country and its people. Also, I dream that I will be able to make my parents proud someday. Malala Yousafzai, Greta Thunberg and all other young leaders inspire me to do something good in the future. Now, our environment is being polluted gradually. We cannot breathe properly in this air. I would like to contribute by doing something good for the environment.

In the past when there was a shortage of electricity, it’s hampered my study and my results were bad. Now, my friends and I can study attentively. There is no way to do otherwise. Now, we pay our electricity bill by prepaid meter. So, we try to save our electricity by minimizing usage. Whenever we go outside at night, we see shops, markets, and roads are decorated with various lights and lighting decoration.

We live in Dhaka, but during summer holiday, we often go to visit our village home. In the village, there is a shortage of electric supply. During that time, we do not have much to do in the village. We go to sleep then.

To have a good, productive life, the importance of electricity is indescribable. All our factories, textile industries, and markets–everything is running because of electricity. If there were no electricity, there would be nothing.  Because of electricity, we do not feel insecure. We have road lights in the roads beside our house. Shops remain open late at night.

I have heard the name of China. China is a big country and is very developed among others. Bangladesh has economic and business relations with China. I have no idea how electricity has been produced. But I know there are many coal-based electric plants in Bangladesh. I read these in my academic books. This plant also creates many work opportunities for us. These plants have contributed to Bangladesh’s development. When we were younger, we experienced severe electricity crises. At that time, we did not have these amounts of factories or shopping malls. Development has taken place because of available electricity.

We are living a great life, but our environment and atmosphere are in danger. To save ourselves from dust and pollution, we wear masks when we go to school. Now we are becoming more concerned about saving our environment and climate. I would like to grow up in a developed world, but also in a healthy and good climate