Chemical warehouses to be relocated from old Dhaka: Industries Minister

Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun on Monday said the government had taken initiative to transfer chemical warehouses from old Dhaka within six months.

The Minister said this at a meeting with different stakeholders at his ministry office in the capital on the next important task related to the fateful fire incident in Chawkbazar on the night of February 20.
State Minister for Industries Ministry Kamal Hossain Mozumder, Acting Secretary of the Industries Ministry Abdul Halim and other senior officials were present at the meeting.

Different officials of the Industries Ministry and the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief Ministry, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Labor and Employment, Power Division, Security Services Division, Bangladesh University of Engineering, Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk), Fire Service and Civil Defense, National Board of Revenue, Department of Environment, Dhaka WASA, Bangladesh Bank and the leaders of FBCCI and representatives of other business organizations concerned took part in the meeting.

After the meeting Industries Minister said the government was providing all sorts of support for the transfer of the Chemical industry from old Dhaka.
For this reason, different government organizations have been working to transfer chemical warehouses from old Dhaka. He also said chemical warehouses cannot be allowed in residential areas.

The Minister said the site for the chemical warehouse will be selected on the outskirt of Dhaka. According to the instructions of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the decision will be implemented very soon.
The Minister said, "We are looking for ways to solve the problem of old Dhaka."

The State Minister said if all concerned including the local business communities were aware the accident could be avoided.
Beside this, the Industries Ministry recommended that the Bangladesh Bank without approval of the local authority should not issue banking facility to traders of chemical products.

The government is going to set up a project 'BSCIC Chemical Polli Project in Keranijanj'.  Meanwhile, at least six panels from different government offices have been working for the last few days to unearth the cause of the Chawkbazar fire on February 20.

At least 67 dead bodies were found crumpled on the staircase of the ground floor of Wahed Mansion. The Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defense, Ministry of Home Affairs and the Department of Explosives have almost completed their reports. The chemicals warehouses and storage of plastics and cosmetic goods in the shops and buildings in the neighborhood intensified the fire, investigators believe.