Nimtali tragedy: Scars may diminish, but wounds remain unhealed

June 3, 2010. The clock struck 9 pm. The alleys of old Dhaka were still bustling. And right at that time, the most tragic fire accident in the country's history occurred. In which 124 fresh lives from 72 families were lost. More than two hundred people were injured. On that terrible day, the countrymen witnessed a brutal scene. Many saw their loved ones burn before their eyes. Fathers saw their children burn to ashes before their eyes. Wives and mothers kept wishing for the death of their injured husbands and children.

The fire that started in the chemical warehouse on the ground floor of the five-story house of Gulzar Ali, a resident of 43 Nawab Katara, spread to an area of ​​about half a kilometer. The fire burned for more than three hours. The flames of the fire reduced 23 homes, shops and factories to ashes. Rescue work continued for more than 24 hours.

Today marks the 16th anniversary of the tragic Nimtali tragedy. Nimtali has largely recovered from the terrible fire. The destroyed five-story building has been repaired and one floor has been added to make it six. A memorial has been built on the west side of the building in memory of the victims. The burnt houses have been repaired and painted. The burn wounds on the bodies of the victims have also dried up. But the painful memories of that day have not been erased. Every year, the people of Nimtali remember the terrible fire and cry for their lost relatives.

Even after 16 years, the people of Nimtali have not received a fair trial for this terrible incident. No case has been filed. Those responsible have not been identified. No one has been punished. Only a general diary was filed at Bangshal police station. Page after page of the calendar has been turned, but that GD has not been investigated further. A source at Bangshal Police Station said that based on the GD in the Nimtali incident, the bodies of 124 people were handed over to their relatives for burial without autopsy on the orders of the Dhaka Deputy Commissioner. The copy of the GD made in the fire incident cannot be found now. The police did not get any information about whether an investigation report was submitted to the court regarding the GD.

In this incident, 72 families were given Tk1 lakh each by the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Local Awami League leader and former MP Haji Selim provided one month's essentials and other assistance. But after that, no one has looked into the affected people of this area till date. Most of the affected families in that incident have left this area and moved elsewhere.

According to the relevant sources, there are more than 25,000 chemical warehouses and shops in the capital's Old Dhaka. Of these, only 800 have approval or licenses, all the rest are illegal. A shopkeeper, who did not want to be named, said that big businessmen secretly store chemicals in various houses. Chemicals are stored in warehouses in residential areas of Lalbagh, Chawkbazar, Armanitola, Babubazar, Mitford and other high-risk places in Old Dhaka. However, the businessmen have always denied the existence of warehouses.

After the Nimtali tragedy, a task force was formed. A plan was made to remove chemical warehouses and factories from the capital. Two committees were also formed. That committee recommended fixing the location in Keraniganj and Narayanganj. At the same time, it submitted a report to the Industries Ministry listing more than 500 highly hazardous chemicals. At that time, the Industries Ministry took the initiative to establish a chemical village. But almost 9 years passed after the project was approved. In the meantime, a fire broke out in the chemical warehouse in the 'Wahed Mansion' building in Churihatta where 71 people died. After the Churihatta incident, the Ministry of Industries took the initiative to move some chemical warehouses to the land of the closed Ujala Match Factory in Kathaldia, Tongi and Shyampur, Dhaka. But there has been no significant progress in this either. According to the sources, the project to move the chemical warehouses was approved at a cost of Tk 917.4 crore in the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting for the period from July 2019 to July 2020. Then, as it could not be implemented on time, the project period was extended by another year to December 2021. But even during this period, BSEC could not complete the work. Later, the project period was extended by another year to December 2022. Despite two extensions, BSEC could not complete the work. After the Churihatta tragedy, the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) started the eviction drive of risky chemical godowns. Later, the eviction drive was temporarily suspended at the request of the FBCCI, but the drive did not start again.

Life after life is lost but hazardous chemicals do not move from Old Dhaka. After the Nimtali accident, it was supposed to remove all types of chemical shops, warehouses and factories from residential areas. But even after 16 years, it has not been possible to implement it. Every time a major accident happens, there is talk of removing chemical godowns. But it remains in papers. Then again some people die and some survive like cattle.