Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) closed three buildings on Saturday in Narayanganj finding workers’ safety at risk, officials said. The three buildings that accommodated more than a dozen factories mainly produced apparel products including hosiery, knitwear and shirt collars for the local market. “We have closed the buildings due to cracks found there. It might have occurred due to the earthquakes,” DIFE Inspector (Narayanganj) Farhana Kabir told the FE. Being informed by Police that the buildings tilted, the DIFE with concerned magistrate sealed the three buildings, she said adding there was also existence of cracks. One building at the holding number 65/14, Nayamati, Narayanganj, housed about 16 factories, she said adding most of them did not even have a name and they produced hosiery and other products. When asked she said the factories were announced closed immediately after the earthquake and they could not get detailed information about the remaining two buildings-holding number 65/20 and 65/22. None of the two buildings’ authorities could be contacted till Sunday, she added. Meanwhile, a good number of garment workers in different industrial belts especially in Dhaka, Ashulia, Savar, Gazipur and Narayanganj were injured while rushing out in panic during Sunday’s earthquake. “Some 100-150 workers in different industrial zones were injured when they rushed to go out from the factory buildings in panic,” Industrial Police Director General Abdus Salam said. They came out from the factories at noon and did not join the workplace, he added. 50 per cent of the production remained suspended during Saturday and Sunday due to the earthquake panic and most of the factories especially in Ashulia and Gazipur remained closed, Md Shahidullah Azim, vice president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association said.
Source: https://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2015/04/27/90463
