Illegal chemical factories

The sheer number of risky, illegal chemical factories in Old Dhaka has turned the place into a ticking time bomb. As per a report in a leading Bangla daily, of the 25,000 chemical warehouses in Old Dhaka, 15,000 are located in residential buildings, and 22,000 are illegal. According to an official of the Fire Service and Civil Defence, only two percent of chemical godowns have permits, and the rest of the 98 percent are operating without license from the City Corporation. 

These numbers are shocking and disturbing to say the least. Only last month, three people died in a fire in a plastics warehouse in Islambagh, and a fire broke out in the PVC unit storing large amounts of chemicals in a footwear factory in Jatrabari.   

It seems that we have learnt nothing from past tragedies. The glaring lack of effective measures by concerned authorities to remove illegal chemical warehouses from the area and to stop these from proliferating is all the more unacceptable in light of previous catastrophes such as the Nimtoli fire incident of 2010 that killed more than 100 people and left hundreds injured.

While the Industries Minister's recent statement on the government's plan to shift all chemical and plastic factories outside Dhaka is reassuring, we urge the authorities to make good on their word. This will require coordination among various entities, including City Corporation, Fire Service and Department of Explosives. Responsible authorities cannot continue to turn a blind eye to these illegal businesses and must beware of the impending disaster.