Victims of the Rana Plaza collapse have been paid 70 per cent of the $16.4 million or Tk 1.26 billion aid funds while the Trust Fund seeks $3.0 million more to dole out. A spokesman said Saturday the total amount the Rana Plaza Trust Fund stood at $27 million, including the payments received from the Prime Minister’s Office and foreign retailer Primark. The amount is inclusive of a latest commitment of $3 million in contribution to the fund. However, he said, there is still a shortage of $3.0 million from the estimated requirement of $30 million to compensate the victims and their families. “Good news is that we have got commitment of getting more $3.0 million,” Executive Commissioner of the Rana Plaza Claims Administration (RPCA) Dr Mojtaba Kazazi said, without naming the contributors. Mr Kazazi was addressing a press briefing in the city a day after the second anniversary of the tragedy in which at least 1,138 people, mostly garment workers, were killed and many maimed for life. Two other commissioners — Justice ABM Khairul Haque and Sultana Kamal — were also present. So far, the amounts either received in the Trust Fund or spent otherwise for the benefit of the workers came approximately to $24 million. It also includes the payments made by the Prime Minister’s Office and the global brand Primark. From the PMO, some $2.4 million has so far been disbursed while Primark has committed to pay $6.3 million to the 600 workers of New Wave Bottom that made apparels for the buyer. The brand has also committed $1.0 million directly to the Trust Fund. “Some Tk 760 million, equivalent to $9.85 million, has so far been paid to Rana Plaza injured workers, dependants of the deceased and the missing people direct from the Trust Fund,” Mr Kazazi said. The amount is 70 per cent of the total awards approved by the Commissioners, after deduction of amounts paid to the injured and families of the deceased and missing workers from the Prime Minister Welfare Fund and initial payment of Tk 50,000 each from the Trust Fund. The total amount for all issued awards is approximately Tk 1.26 billion (Tk 126 crore) or $16.4 million, he said, adding that the paid-out $9.85 million is 70 per cent of the total $16.4 million. The payments were made in several phases: 40 per cent of the total payments had been made in five separate instalments since September till December 2014 and the rest 30 per cent on April 8 last. “The remaining 30 per cent of awards will be paid to the claimants as soon as funds become available at the Trust Fund,” he said. The compensation to the beneficiaries is calculated on the basis of ILO convention 121. A total of 2,871 claims have been received from the injured workers and dependants of the deceased and the missing. Out of them, 2,839 claims have been reviewed by the RPCA, approved by the Commissioners and authorized by the Rana Plaza Coordination Committee. The remaining 32 claims with some 20-30 additional deceased claims that may yet be filed will be included in the final instalment.
Source: https://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2015/04/26/90312
