Survivors of the tragic Rana Plaza collapse and devastating fire incident at Tazreen Fashion Limited on Tuesday demanded proper compensation, rehabilitation and lifelong treatment facilities.
At a meeting with labour and employment adviser to the interim government Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain held at labour ministry conference room in the capital Dhaka, injured workers from Rana Plaza claimed that the previous government collected a fund worth Tk 127 crore in the name of compensation and rehabilitation but it disbursed only Tk 19 crore among them.
More than 1,100 people, mostly garment workers, died in the Rana Plaza building collapse on April 24, 2013 as five garment factories were housed in the faulty eight-storied building.
Earlier on November 24, 2012, more than 100 garment workers died in the fire at Tazreen Fashion factory at Ashulia.
At least 50 survivors of the two incidents on Tuesday urged the government to bring building and factory owners and people responsible for the building collapse and factory fire to justice.聽
They also demanded compensation to account for the years of lost earnings.
Speaking on behalf of the workers, Mahmud Hassan Rubel, a Rana Plaza survivor, said that many required lifelong treatment, which the government should ensure.
He called for a monument to be erected on the site of Rana Plaza in memory of the deceased workers.
Rubel also urged the government to seize assets of the building and factory owners for the rehabilitation of the workers, as the owners evaded paying compensation.聽
Labour and employment adviser Asif assured the workers that the government would form an inquiry committee, including representatives from the labour ministry, trade unions and injured workers, to address their demands.
The committee would work on alleged anomalies in paying compensation, providing treatment and rehabilitation to the Rana Plaza and Tazreen workers, he said.
鈥楾he government would take initiative based on the findings of the committee,鈥� Asif added.
Regarding the fund collected by the previous government, the adviser said that they would investigate the issue and try to disburse the rest of the fund among the survivors.
After the Rana Plaza collapsed in 2013, the then prime minister Sheikh Hasina urged all to come forward to help the victims and their families.
Responding to the call, government and non-government organisations, including banks, insurance companies, schools, colleges, and a large number of individuals donated Tk 1,27,67,33,349 to the Prime Ministers Relief and Welfare Fund between April 29 and July 8 of 2013 for providing compensation and rehabilitation to the Rana Plaza victims.
The then agriculture minister Matia Chowdhury disclosed the amount before the parliament in reply to a question of the then parliament member from Sunamganj-5 constituency Muhibur Rahman Manik on July 14, 2013.