‘Check documents before providing utility services to factories’

Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka Abu Saleh Mohammad Ferdous Khan today called upon the utility service providers including gas and electricity suppliers to check necessary documents before providing their services to any factory.

Dhaka district administration is trying to identify the non-compliant factories like fire-ravaged plastic factory in Keraniganj so that such incident does not repeat, the DC said.

He was talking to reporters visiting the Prime Pet and Plastic Industry in Keraniganj where a devastating fire left 13 workers dead and 19 others injured.

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It was a death trap

It will be inspected how the factory was set up in the residential area and how the authorities conducted its operation here, the DC said.

Meanwhile, Keraniganj upazila administration today sealed off a godown of the Prime Pet and Plastic Industry in Chunkutia area.

Besides, five factories were sealed off in different areas under Keraniganj upazila since yesterday as the authorities failed to show valid documents, said Keraniganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer Amit Deb Nath.

“If the factory authorities can show documents, then, we will take further decision in this regard,” the UNO told reporters after sealing one of the five factories in the area.  

The fire-ravaged plastic factory in Keraniganj, with around 15,000 sqft floor space, had a single gate for entry and exit and no emergency exits whatsoever. It had six large rooms inside, but everyone there had to use that one gate to get out.  

Wednesday afternoon’s fire originated close to the gate and it trapped around 150 workers at the unapproved Prime Pet and Plastic Industries set up in a residential area of Chunkutia neighbourhood. 

Locals alleged that the authorities concerned turned a blind eye to the lack of safety measures at the factory even though it had been producing disposable plastic cups and plates for around 10 years and had witnessed two other fire incidents this year alone.