Dhaka, April 20 -- More than 600 garment factories are set to receive fuel cards to collect required quantities of diesel from the nearest designated filling stations to keep operations running.

In the first phase, 464 factories under the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and 177 under the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) are expected to receive the cards shortly.

The move follows the demand from the BGMEA to allow garment factories to procure diesel from filling stations under a special arrangement, raised at a meeting with the energy minister on April 13.

During the meeting, the BGMEA said the garment industry was in a fragile situation due to the energy crisis trigg...