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No steps yet to enforce building code

Tawfique Au
The government has not adopted any mechanism to enforce Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) properly, letting accidents to occur at the construction sites and allowing flaws in building construction and demolition.
According to provision in the BNBC, experts said the government has to designate authorities and appoint required number of building officials to enforce the code.
The gazette notification on the building code was issued on November 15, 2006 but the government is yet to appoint any building officials or delegate any agency to bring the code into practice which is necessary for ensuring safe construction.
Mubasshar Hussain, president of the Institute of Architects Bangladesh and a member of government's Nagar Unnayan Committee headed by the works secretary, said that the government's attitude to BNBC is 'apathetic.'
’There is no denial that fatal incidents one after another at the construction sites are due to non-compliance with the BNBC," he said.
"I raise the issue of implementation of the BNBC at every meeting of the Nagar Unnayan Committee but my point is not even recorded in the meetings minutes," said Hussain.
The BNBC is a complete set of codes to ensure sound construction, accountability of the professionals concerned, protection of environment and safe demolition, said experts.
The code addresses all the safety concerns like fire hazard, stability and strength of a build-
ing and quality ofconstruction.
Death due to non-compliance with the BNBC in both construction and demolition works in the city have been a recurrent phenomenon. At least four death incidents at construction sites have been reported in the city over a span of four months.
A 20-year-old undergraduate student, Selim Hossain, died on
September 14 last year in Gopibagh in the city, as bricks of a raw wall fell on him from the fourth floor of an underconstruction six-storey building.
Ashraf Ali, a pedestrian, died in a similar accident on September 16, 2007 in Lalbagh area. A construction worker, Taslim died on November 23 falling off an under-construction
building on RK Mission Road.
Use of extremely poor quality construction materials caused the structural failure of a six-storey sweeper colony building built by Dhaka City Corporation on May 25 last year in the city's Dayaganj area within a week of construction.
An apartment building in Dhanmondi built by a well-
known real estate builder developed cracks in the structure a couple of months back. The construction was done only two years ago.
In absence of proper implementation of BNBC, it is easy for any builder to get away with a faulty design and use of low quality construction materials, said experts.
Sekendar Ali, a professor of civil engineering at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), said that BNBC is crucial for making buildings strong, safe and environmentally sound. It is vital for ensuring quality construction.
Tragedy in Rangs Bhaban demolition was mainly due to non-compliance with the building codes, according to experts. At least 11 demolition workers died falling trapped under debris as floors of the Rangs building caved in at night of November 8.
Prof Jamilur Reza Chowdhury, an expert in civil engineering, said, "There are detailed provisions on demolition work in chapter four of the BNBC but every sentence of the code regarding demolition has been violated in the case of Rangs Bhaban."
Secretary at the Ministry of Housing and Public Works ASM Rashidul Hai said Public Works Department (PWD) is supposed to place a proposal to the ministry in regard of how to ensure proper compliance with the BNBC but it has not yet done so.
Chief Engineer of PWD Abdullah-Al-Safi said that they are soon going to place the proposal, hopefully within a week.
"We will make the proposal in the light* of BNBC to designate executive engineers of PWD as
the building officials to monitor compliance with the BNBC in each of PWD’s engineering division," he said
Safi said that Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) should do the job of ensuring compliant e with BNBC in die capital, as the organisation is very much involved in the city's development.
A Rajuk member said requesting anonymity that the ministry has to delegate and appoint building officials to practise the code.
As per BNBC provision, a building official should be a technical hand like engineer, architect and planner and have adequate authority not only to monitor a construction process but also to approve building design.
Professionals including civil engineers, archi tects and planners involved with any construction work will remain legally liable and answer-able for any lapses in the professional responsibility, according to BNBC.
The code is supposed to be updated every five year.
The Building Construction Act of 1953, amended in 2006, provides for punishment with seven years of imprisonment or a fine of Tk 50,000 or both in case of violation of the BNBC and the BuildingConstruction Rulesof2006.