The Covid-19 pandemic has already devastated lives and livelihoods in Bangladesh. In the midst of such difficult times, the last thing the country needs is for the situation to be exacerbated through safety hazards.
Unfortunately, that is precisely what continues to happen. Just this week, a fire broke out at a knit factory in Chittagong, while elsewhere in Narayanganj, there was a series of air conditioners that exploded in a mosque, resulting in the deaths of at least 23 people from their burn injuries.
While these are accidents that seemingly no one could predict, a closer look at both cases reveals that, when it comes to ensuring safety, there is a certain urgency that is lacking, and this must be addressed.
The fire at the knit factory occurred after an electric short-circuit, while the series of air conditioners exploding in the mosque is suspected to be caused by a leakage in the gas pipelines. Both of these cases, but in particular the second one in Narayanganj, is a result of negligence and a failure to adhere to certain standards of safety.
Too many lives are lost every year with regards to our carelessness, disregard, apathy, and negligence. We keep hearing about fires breaking out, of road and rail accidents, of construction disasters -- all of these, while perhaps not entirely avoidable, can be greatly minimized if people prioritized safety and followed the right measures in doing so.
Not only does this include holding those responsible for ensuring this safety accountable, as in the case of the gas leakage in Narayanganj, but also those who continue to exhibit callousness at the cost of people’s lives.