Standard Group Factory Blaze
BGMEA, owners demand exemplary punishment
The apparel factory owners’ association on Saturday demanded an exemplary punishment of the people responsible for the fire that took place in the multi-storey industrial unit of the Standard Group at Konabari in Gazipur on Thursday night.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters’ Association president, Atiqul Islam, at a news briefing at the BGMEA office, said that a vested interest group was working to destroy the apparel sector with the use of rumours.
He also demanded a separate law for the apparel sector. ‘Such incidents are committed one after another as the government is not sincere about punishing the people responsible.’
He said that the conspirators were busy thwarting the economic growth of the country.
The BGMEA several times earlier urged the government to ensure security for the apparel factories but the government was yet to take any initiative, he said.
The Standard Group managing director, Mosharraf Hossain, broke into tears at the news briefing saying that he had lost everything to the fire.
He said that miscreants had burnt fabrics and machines, furniture and 22 covered vans laden with finished products.
He asked the government to find out who attacked the main factory gate about 10:30pm on Thursday. He wanted to know who had made the announcement on the PA system of a mosque asking people to attack the factory and who had obstructed fire fighters and the police from reaching the spot in time.
He also asked who would get the bank liability of letters of credit worth about Tk 400 crore.
He said that he had lost about Tk 1,200 crore to the fire incident and he had fallen sick after the fire in the factory.
They urged the government to ban all meetings Balur Math, beside the factory, where some people were regularly holding meetings.
When the factory owner was addressing reporters at the BGMEA office about 2:30pm, fire was still burning in the Standard Group factory in Gazipur, the New Age correspondent in the district said. The fire could contained about 4:00pm.
Workers were crying in the front of the factory as they lost their job. They also demanded punishment of the people responsible for the incident.
They said that they had no complaints regarding wage payment against the factory management. They said that they were frustrated and worried about their future if the factory could not be reopened.
M Aktharuzzaman, deputy assistant director of the Fire Service and Civil Defence in Gazipur, said that they had fully contained the fire about 4.00pm on Saturday.
He said that a three-member committee was investigating the fire and trying to establish what caused it. The committee will submit its report within 15 working days.
A group of miscreants on Thursday set fire to the Standard Group industrial unit, damaging the property that suspended the factory operation.
No casualties, however, were reported as 25,000 people working there had left eight-storey building before it had been set on fire.
Fire fighters took more than 15 hours to contain the flames.
The Standard Group, the second largest company in the country’s apparel sector, supplied products to GAP, ZARA, KOHL’s, American Eagle outfitters, Tommy Hilfiger, Sears and Gymboree, among others, international clients.
-With New Age input
