Published : 29 Aug 2026, 08:38 PM
Updated : 08 Sep 2026, 09:36 AM
The government has renewed cash rewards for information leading to the recovery of looted and illegal firearms, nearly a year after a similar incentive was announced.
Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmad announced the revised rewards on Saturday after a quarterly crime review conference organised by the Police Headquarters at the Rajarbagh Police Auditorium in Dhaka, according to a statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Under the new scheme, informants can receive up to Tk 200,000 for information that helps authorities recover heavy weapons.
Those providing information leading to the recovery of pistols, revolvers or shotguns will be eligible for rewards of up to Tk 50,000.
Rewards of Tk 10,000, Tk 15,000 or Tk 20,000 will also be offered, depending on the circumstances, for information that helps recover sound grenades, looted tear gas shells and other stolen weapons.
The identities of informants will be kept strictly confidential, the minister said.
The latest announcement comes as a substantial number of weapons looted during the unrest surrounding the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government in August 2024 remain unaccounted for.
On Aug 5, 2024, Hasina's official residence Gonobhaban, the National Parliament complex and numerous police stations and outposts were attacked. Media reports said around 3,500 weapons were looted at the time.
The interim government later announced rewards for information leading to their recovery.
That scheme offered Tk 50,000 for pistols and shotguns, Tk 100,000 for Chinese rifles, Tk 150,000 for submachine guns and Tk 500,000 for light machine guns, as well as Tk 500 for each round of ammunition.
Some of the looted weapons have since been recovered, but many remain missing.
The new scheme also extends rewards to information on illegal weapons, including firearms whose licences were cancelled but which were not surrendered within the stipulated time.
Salahuddin said special units involving different intelligence agencies had already been formed to step up efforts to recover looted and illegal arms.
“Special units involving different intelligence agencies have already been formed and operations intensified to recover looted and illegal weapons,” he said.
He also said cases had been filed over weapons with cancelled licences that had not been surrendered, and operations to recover them were continuing.
The home minister said police had been given deadlines to take effective action against criminals, extortionists and drug dealers, warning that officers who failed to show sufficient progress could face disciplinary action.
“If any officer fails to show the expected progress within the stipulated time, strict action will be taken against them,” he said.
Salahuddin added that special operations were being carried out across the country with intelligence support to curb illegal weapons, drugs, smuggling and extortion.
The quarterly crime review conference was chaired by Inspector General of Police Md Ali Hossain Fakir.
