‘Some hazardous marketplaces to be closed down after Eid’

Prime Minister's Private Industries and Investment Adviser Salman F Rahman has said the government will shut down certain Dhaka marketplaces at risk of fire hazards or other disasters after Eid-ul-Fitr.

 “We have to take drastic action for one or two markets which we think are unsafe, where a disaster can happen. Some of the markets in Dhaka I think will be closed down immediately after Eid,” he said during a talk show ‘Inside Out’ on Sunday, reports bdnews24.com.

Although the adviser did not specify the marketplaces that are considered to be closed down, he mentioned name of Gausia Market as a risky one.

His comments came amid a spate of disasters, including the latest devastating fire at Bangabazar, which gutted thousands of shops at one of the largest clothing marketplaces in the country.

Salman F Rahman is currently in charge of the multilateral national committee on the overall safety of Bangladesh’s factories.

The committee has inspected over 5,000 factories and businesses, Rahman said, adding that the government made a list based on risk factors. "And we identified about 200 - very, very risky ones. And we've sent notices to them.”

Though fire safety is a significant issue, it is possible to address it, as the garments sector has showed, Rahman said.

“We have proved it in the garment industry. In the garment industry, there were problems and we have resolved them.”