State Minister for Labour and Employment, Begum Munnuzan Sufian, called for enforcement of the maintenance and supervision to ensure foolproof security at the closed jute mills.
She said the government had given full financial benefits to the workers of the jute mills and the state owned jute mills including those in the Khulna region will resume operational activities as public-private partnerships (PPP), reports BSS.
The state minister said this at a special meeting held at the Khulna Circuit House conference room on Monday afternoon, concerning overall law, order and security in the closed mill areas.
The meeting was held with a view to checking on the possible theft of important goods and pilferage of valuable parts due to closure of the mills.
As per government decision, production at the state-owned jute mills in Khulna has been suspended to date and operational activities in those mills will resume on a PPP basis.
Mayor of Khulna City Corporation, Talukder Abdul Khaleque, and Police Commissioner of KMP, Dr Khandaker Lutful Kabir, were present at the meeting and the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Khulna, Mohammad Helal Hossain, presided over the function.
KCC Mayor Talukder Abdul Khaleque said, jute mill workers were engaged only in production, but it is the responsibility of the officials to ensure the safety and maintenance of the mills and there is no scope for officials to neglect their responsibilities even in off-hours.
Khulna Police Commissioner Khandaker Lutful Kabir said law enforcement agencies would always standby to cooperate with the mill authorities.
He also suggested installation of 360 degree CCTV cameras in each jute mill for round the clock surveillance.
DC Mohammad Helal Hossain said the ICT department of the district administration would provide any and all assistance to strengthen security at the mills and if necessary, the assistance of experts from Khulna University and Khulna University of Engineering and Technology could be sought.
RAB, Khulna District Police, Industrial Police, Naval Police, Divisional Labour Department officials and project heads of the jute mills, among others, were present at the meeting.
On July 2 last year, the government announced the closure of 25 state-owned jute mills across the country, including nine in the Khulna region.
