RAJUK identifies 300 risky buildings in city

The Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK), the capital development body, said on Monday that it has identified around 300 small and large buildings out of the 3,252 assessed that are vulnerable to earthquakes, report agencies.
RAJUK has only assessed the earthquake resilience and risk of 3,252 structures out of 2.1 million buildings in Dhaka and Gazipur so far.
"Three hundred buildings, both large and small, have been identified as vulnerable," RAJUK Chairman Engineer Riazul Islam stated during a meeting of quake experts and engineers on post-earthquake activities at the Institute of Engineers Bangladesh (IEB) here.
RAJUK's chief town planner, M. Ashraful Islam, told BSS over the phone that a preliminary survey conducted across the capital found 300 buildings vulnerable, showing signs of "cracks and tilts."
He mentioned that eight RAJUK teams were working on the primary survey after the earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 on the Richter scale hit the capital on Friday, followed by three subsequent ones the next day.
Housing and Public Works Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan and Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan attended the meeting at the IEB and provided policy directives to minimize earthquake damage.
Earthquake disaster management experts Professor Mehedi Ahmed Ansari and Professor Tanvir Manjur of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) presented papers on quake preparedness and post-quake management.
"Coordinated efforts of all government agencies are essential to reduce earthquake risk, along with people's preparation," Adilur Rahman Khan emphasized.
Rizwana Hasan called for increased public awareness about earthquakes and suggested that RAJUK conduct a thorough assessment of vulnerable buildings.