Experts for retrofitting quake-prone bldgs

Japanese experts on Sunday observed that important buildings in Bangladesh vulnerable to earthquake should be retrofitted to make those tremor-resistant, reports UNB.

Retrofitting is a technology that could be used to make a vulnerable building earthquake-resistant without demolishing it.

"There is a notion that retrofitting is very expensive and it is not viable for economy like Bangladesh. But it is totally wrong. Usually it only costs 10-30 per cent of new construction," said Fumio Kaneko, leader of JICA expert team working here for transferring retrofitting technology from Japan to Bangladesh.

The JICA expert team leader made the remark on Sunday, a day before the International Day for Disaster Reduction to be observed across the country as elsewhere around the globe today (Monday).

A team of Japanese experts have been transferring the retrofitting technology here through imparting training to local engineers under a project, titled 'Capacity Development on Natural Disaster-Resistant

Technique of Construction and Retrofitting for Public Buildings (CNCRP)'.

The project is being implemented by the Public Works Department (PWD) with the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), says a press release from the JICA office in Dhaka.

Kaneko said Bangladesh is at a high risk of earthquake as the country has not experienced any major tremor since the 19th century and most of the buildings in Bangladesh are works of masonry that increases the risk further.

"The Rana Plaza tragedy was indeed a wake-up call for us," he said.

The JICA team leader said there are many options including complying with the Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC), improving the existing building condition and raising awareness among people to turn the current situation to a better one.

"While we promote the BNBC to take its root in Bangladesh, another option we can take is to retrofit the existing important buildings," he said.