Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said the government will provide assistance to the Bangabazar businesspeople as much as possible after assessing damages caused by Tuesday's fire.

The PM was addressing a programme at the Gono Bhaban yesterday. The event was organised to receive Tk 316.91 crore as first and second instalments of the loan provided by the government for the construction of Padma Bridge.

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader handed a cheque of Tk 316,90,97,049 to the PM for the loan instalments. The loan was taken from Bangladesh Bank at a low interest rate under an agreement signed between the Finance Division and the Bangladesh Bridge Authority.

Terming the Bangabazar fire a very tragic incident, Hasina said it is too much to bear the suffering of so many businesspeople ahead of the Eid.

She said the government had taken up a project to construct a planned market at Bangabazar following the fires in 1995 and 2018. But some people obstructed the move and filed a writ petition with the High Court, which put a stay order in place, the PM added.

If the process was not halted at that time, the government could have built a good market there, and such a terrible accident would not have happened, Hasina added.

The PM, however, criticised some unruly people who attacked the Fire Service headquarters nearby.

Firefighters rushed to the scene after the fire broke out.

The premier said she asked the authorities to identify the attackers and take proper action against them.

Hasina said if anyone attacks members or vehicles of the fire service or other public properties in future, they won't be spared.