Dhaka, April 01 – The High Court (HC)on Monday directed the authorities concerned to submit a detailed report before it about fire suppression systems and fire safety measures in high-rise buildings in the capital city Dhaka.
The mayors of Dhaka north and south city corporations, Rajuk chairman and director general (DG) of Fire Service and Civil Defence have been asked to jointly submit the report before the court within four
months.
In an another order, the HC bench also directed the DG of fire service to submit a separate report in a month on manpower, equipment and other necessary things to douse the fire.
The court also issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain in two weeks why construction of the buildings without sufficient fire safety measures should not be declared illegal.
In the rule, the HC also asked the government to explain why it should not be directed to set up a fire station at Gulshan of Dhaka.
The HC in the rule also asked the government why it should not be directed to pay compensation to families of the victims who lost their lives in the fire incidents of Chawkbazar in Old Dhaka and FR Tower in Banani.
In response to a writ petition, the HC bench comprising Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir came up with the directives and rule.
Barrister Shukla Sarwat Siraj, secretary general of Gulshan Society, on Sunday filed the writ petition with the High Court challenging legality of constructing buildings in Dhaka without sufficient fire safety measures.
Apart from these HC directives and rule, the petitioner in his petition also sought HC directive on the ministry of education to include awareness on fire safety and training of civil defence within the national curriculum.
Siraj filed the writ petition with the HC in the wake of some recent fires in the capital, with a devastating fire in Banani’s FR Tower on March 28 claiming the lives of 26 and injuring scores more. Fire safety experts found that the commercial high rise lacked any safe fire exit.
After the Gulshan market fire in January 2017, the fire service department identified that almost all the around 200 commercial high rises in the capital’s Banani and Gulshan had no approved fire safety plan. – Staff Reporter
