Two painters fell off an 18-storey building at Motijheel in the capital and died, hospital sources said.
The deceased were Abbas, 30, and Swapan, 28, who brothers and residents of Muladi in Barisal.
Witnessed said they had fallen on the ground when they were painting the walls of the top floor of the WW Tower about 11:30am. The fell off as the rope ladder snapped.
The Motijheel police officer-in-charge, Tofazzal Hossain, said they had died on the spot.
The police later sent the bodies to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for post-mortem examinations.
Owners in the construction firms are reluctant to provide workers with any safety equipment which causes frequent fatal incidents, according to a recent survey.
According to the findings of a survey conducted by the Bangladesh Occupational Safety, Health and Environment Foundation, the total number of recorded deaths in the construction sector was 102 during January–June 2010. Eighty-one were injured during the period.
According to Clause 65 of the Bangladesh Labour Law 2006, the definition of a worker is ‘a person who is employed in an institute or industry directly or through any contractor.’
Clause 150 of the law says, ‘The owners will be compelled to give compensation if any worker is injured in any accident originating from the ongoing work.’
