The government and readymade garment (RMG) factory owners have started working jointly on how to reopen the units phase by phase, sources said. Top government officials and the factory owners discussed zone-wise reopening of factories in a meeting held at the Prime Minister’s Office on Wednesday, they said. However, no specific date for reopening the units has been set in the meeting, the sources added. A recently formed task force will prepare a guideline on when and how to reopen the factories, they said, adding the task force will disclose the details soon. Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam, principal secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office Ahmad Kaikaus, Finance Secretary Abdur Rouf Talukder, Labour Secretary KM Ali Azam, former presidents of BGMEA Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin, Abdus Salam Murshedy and Anwar-ul-Alam Chowdhury Parvez, incumbent president Rubana Huq, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) President K M Salim Osman, Vice President Mohammad Hatem, and Bangladesh Textile Mills Association President Mohammad Ali Khokon attended the meeting. Earlier on March 26, BGMEA requested its member factories to close their units until April 04 in line with the public holidays declared by the government to contain the spread of coronavirus. Enduring immense sufferings, thousands of workers from different parts of the country started for Dhaka before April 05, when the country was on virtual lockdown with restrictions on transport services. Following huge criticism, BGMEA and BKMEA announced the closure of factories in line with the public holiday extended until April 25. The leaders of the RMG sector requested the government high-ups to allow factory reopening after the holiday. The government subsequently formed a task force to address the issue.
