Most garment workers of our country usually come from villages. They come to the capital city for a better living for themselves and their families. They face the worst reality of life, no doubt. Nevertheless, many of them have to embrace a very painful death. The recent Savar tragedy is the most severe holocaust of the country since its independence.
It was 8:45am, 24 April 2013, a bright glorious morning. The nine-storey Rana Plaza in Savar was humming with life. Sewing machines whirred; irons steamed. Nobody was much bothered about the cracks that had developed in the building the day before. The dreadful event took place in the twinkle of an eye. The building collapsed within a few seconds, leaving only the ground floor intact.
Approximately, more than 4,500 workers were in the building at the time of the collapse. This tragedy has claimed nearly 1200 lives died and left 2400 others injured, with more than one hundred still missing. It is a matter of great regret that all these hardworking labourers died entirely unexpected and extremely painful death. Hopefully, on 10 May, 17 days after the collapse, a woman named Reshma was found and rescued alive and almost unhurt under the rubble.
The building, Rana Plaza, was owned by Sohel Rana, a leader of the local Jubo League, the youth wing of the ruling Awami League. Despite knowing that the plaza visibly developed some major cracks on its pillars, Sohel Rana and the owner of five garments factories forced their several thousand workers to enter the building to work defying all cautionary words from the local municipal authorities. The factories of the building used to manufacture apparel for many famous international brands including Benetton, Bonmarché, Cato Fashions, The Children's Place, el Corte Ingles, Joe Fresh, Mango, Matalan, Monsoon, Primark, and Walmart.
The head of the Bangladesh Fire Service & Civil Defense, Ali Ahmed Khan, said that the upper four floors had been built without permission. Rana Plaza's architect, Massood Reza, said that the building was planned for shops and offices – but not factories.
All those people who carried out the rescue operation are no doubt the brave sons of the soil. The members of the army, fire service, Red Crescent, and many other volunteers was rendering dedicated service that saved many lives. "Kaikobad" is a name, the country will remember forever. He sacrificed his own life trying to save lives. The services rendered by Enam Medical College Hospital, its staff and students will also be long remembered.
One thing is clear that the spirit of our people can save the nation from any sort of calamity — natural or man-made. This was a lesson for us to learn how to act during the time of any national crisis. We should be thankful to the selfless volunteers, Bangladesh army, BGB, fire brigade, Enam Medical College and Hospital, along with other hospitals, journalists and many others who came forward to participate in the rescue operation and treatment of the victims.
Poor arrangements of fire protection system, prevention and extinction are mostly to be blamed for frequent deaths in garment sectors in Bangladesh. Every time, following the fire or building collapse, the government form phony investigation committees. Often these committees do not consist of the experts and their reports are rarely made public, though they are supposed to do that and recommend to the government for taking action.
Only some financial help for the families of the fire victims is not enough. The injured labours must be rehabilitated immediately. The owners of garment factories, who belong to the rich class, always enjoy the support and sympathy of the government. It is high time Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) stood against those.
