Dhaka: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday issued a set of directives including introduction of yearly clearance certificate by the Fire Service and Civil Defence Department for high-rise buildings like industries and following building code strictly to check fire incidents.

The prime minister gave the directives while chairing the regular cabinet meeting held at Bangladesh Secretariat here this morning, the BSS reported.

After the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam briefed reporters.

The cabinet secretary said the prime minister directed the authorities concerned to regular inspect the fire safety arrangements of the high-rise buildings and other establishments.

She also directed the Fire Service and Civil Defence which is responsible for issuing fire safety clearance certificate for construction of any building to make ensure that the building is viable for construction by inspecting the place.

The other directives the prime minister gave include making arrangements for fire drill by the building owner in every three months to make aware the people about fire safety and innovating techniques that are followed internationally to control smoke during the blaze.

Alam said at the outset of the meeting, the cabinet adopted a condolence motion at the loss of lives and property in the recent devastating fire at FR Tower in city’s Banani area.

It also prayed for eternal peace of the departed souls and conveyed profound sympathy to the bereaved families.

After the motion, the prime minister gave a number of directives on fire safety, the cabinet secretary said.

She asked the people to maintain the building code strictly while constructing any building and create water reservoir and preserve the lakes.

Saying that the Fire Service and Civil Defence Department of the country has only three ladders for high-rise buildings, the prime minister asked the department to increase the number of those.

She told the architects to design the buildings keeping in mind the environment, ensure the fire exit and keep it open all time.

Sheikh Hasina said that currently many offices are using electronic doors that usually do not work during the electricity failure.

In this connection, she asked to make the doors workable manually when there will be no electricity.

She also asked to make an arrangement for tarpaulin in the high-rise building so that it could be use during the fire incident as the emergency exit.

The prime minister asked the authorities to keep veranda in each school and hospital and asked the interior designers to make an arrangement so that those verandas remain open for all time.

She also asked to keep more than one emergency exit, at least two, for each high-rise building.