‘BGMEA should pay more for Rana Plaza victims’

Readymade garment factory owners should contribute more to the prime minister’s fund for Rana Plaza collapse victims, says the PM’s adviser HT Imam.

“It will depend on the DNA test results to decide how long it will take to compensate the victims. I think the BGMEA must contribute to this fund. However, even if they fail to do so, the government will do everything possible for the workers,” he said at a talk-show organised by the BBC Bengali service on Saturday.

Imam said that the government has already disbursed Tk 220 million as compensation for the victims.

He added that more victims could be compensated once the DNA test results are available.

Replying to Imam’s remark, President of Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters’ Association (BGMEA) Atiqul Islam said at the programme that they would contribute to the fund if they manage to get money.

The BGMEA contributed Tk 20 million to the fund when it was formed last year after the collapse, which left over 1,100 people dead, mostly garment factory workers.

Answering a query from the ‘BBC Sanglap’ moderator on contributing to the fund, Islam said, “It may appear that the BGMEA has lot of money. But the truth is a lot of owners are not able to run their factories.”

Workers’ leader Nazma Aktar stressed on the need to amend the law for compensating workers.

“The assistance from the prime minister’s fund does not come under the compensation law. The current law should be reformed to make it more worker-friendly,” she said.