As the government is looking for augmentation of coal based power to meet the increasing demand, the cabinet on Monday approved a proposal of the Power Division for creating a fund for rehabilitation and social development of the neighbourhoods of coal-fired power plants.

The cabinet in its weekly meeting at Bangladesh Secretariat with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair approved the draft of the proposal on 'Fund for Social Development of the Project Area of Coal-based Power Plants and Operation Policy".

Cabinet members, PM's advisors, state ministers in charge of different ministries and concerned secretaries were present in the meeting.

Briefing reporters after the meeting Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said the Power Division proposed for creating the fund with a tariff of three paisa on consumption of per unit of electricity.

The government aimed producing 30,000 MW power by 2020 and 40,000 MW power by 2030 with a target of producing half of it from coal-fired power plants, he said. The cabinet also approved a draft policy for operation of the fund by committees to be constituted with local people, he added.