City development authority Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) will kick-off a thorough inspection of all Dhaka buildings from Sunday (Mar 31), says Housing and Public Works Minister SM Rezaul Karim.
His announcement came after visiting the scene of a devastating fire — the second in a little over two years — that partially gutted the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) market at the capital’s Gulshan-1 early morning on Saturday (Mar 30).
“Rajuk will launch a thorough inspection of buildings across the capital from Sunday, to check whether the building code was followed during construction, and if they have proper fire suppression systems installed.
“Buildings found violating regulations will be identified within 15 days. All activities in those buildings will be suspended, and structures will be sealed if necessary, until those violations are resolved.”
The minister warned stern actions against those behind violating building codes, including owners, developers and even RAJUK officials.
Responding to a query, the minister said: “The government will provide all possible assistance to those who suffered losses in the fire. We are sympathetic to those have been victimized by this incident, and we take all disasters seriously.”
Adding that the DNCC kitchen market was not built in a planned way, SM Rezaul pointed out: “The traders took it upon themselves to build this market, so the electrical connection and other facilities did not meet proper safety standards.
“We are making a serious effort to turn unplanned areas in the city into properly planned and regulated neighbourhoods.”
The fire that broke out at the DNCC market in Dhaka's Gulshan 1 area, destroyed around 212 shops.
The fire was extinguished by 9:30am, confirmed Maj AKM Shakil Nawaz, director (Operation and Maintenance) of Fire Service and Civil Defence, during his press briefing.
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