Cases filed against 252 RMG units

---

Monira Munni Official inspection teams have filed case against 252 readymade garment (RMG) units in the country for doing business without prior approval and with insufficient safety measures, people involved with the process said. They have also given deadline to about 1,500 factories for improvement, they added. The teams, comprising factory and shop inspectors, inspected about 2,462 RMG units from January 31 to August 31 to see whether they complied with the required safety standards especially regarding fire safety. The Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE) formed the special teams, following two recent devastating fire incidents at Tazreen Fashions Ltd and Smart Export Garment Ltd. The Tazreen fire claimed about 112 lives and injured several others, while seven workers died in the fire at the Smart Export. The two fire incidents in quick succession drew both local and global attention, leading to an image crisis of the industry. Those specials teams were formed for inspecting fire safety and other related issues. However, after the Rana Plaza disaster, building safety emerged as the major concern for all, a MoLE official said. "We are focusing mainly on the fire safety standards, including fire prevention measures, electrical safety, number of staircases, provision of 25 per cent open rooftop and license according to the factory laws," an official told the FE. Among the 252 factories, located in the capital and Narayanganj, many were doing business without license, and the remaining units were found very risky regarding fire safety standards. Cases were filed against those units at the labour court. Besides, a large number of factories were not fully compliant with fire safety standards. "We are giving them a deadline to improve, if they fail to comply, the teams will take action," he added. During inspection the teams followed a check-list that included basic information about a factory, such as registration or renewal of registration with the government authorities concerned, its main products, number of workers and officials, approval of building design, factory layout design, exit points and number of staircases, sources said. The list also included other general information including workers' appointment, service book, regular wage, holiday, trade union and life insurance facilities. "The inspection teams are initially monitoring all the readymade garment factories in Dhaka division," MoLE Secretary Mikail Shipar said earlier. They are monitoring the RMG units, irrespective of their affiliation with the Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), he said. "We are now focusing on garment factories due to frequent accidents, pressure from the buyers, and the image crisis the sector is now facing," he said. The ministry has taken moves to appoint additional 200 inspectors by December next to strengthen the inspection, he added. The ministry will start a new inspection programme, targeting about 2,000 garment factories, from tomorrow (September 15) in cooperation with BUET and ILO that will cover all the safety issues including factory building safety.