BB fire damage worth Tk 80 lakh: probe

The recent fire at the Bangladesh Bank headquarters has caused damage of Tk 80 lakh, an inquiry team has found. Subhankar Saha, executive director of the BB, disclosed the findings of an investigation at a press conference at the central bank office yesterday.

No important official documents were damaged in the fire, he said.

An electric kettle was found at the spot and the probe team recommended such appliances should not be used to avoid similar accidents in future, he said.

The inquiry committee also said the security management department should ensure that all electric connections are disconnected after office hours.

It recommended appointing a fire controller and a safety officer at the BB.

The central bank has already undertaken a system to disconnect all electric connections in the building after office hours, said Saha, also the spokesperson for the bank.

The committee did not mention the origin of the fire as it was formed only to assess the damages, he added. On Tuesday, the inquiry committee headed by BB Executive Director Ahmed Jamal submitted its report to Governor Fazle Kabir.

The fire broke out on the 13th floor of the BB headquarters in the city's Motijheel area at around 9:30pm on March 23. It was doused within an hour.

The floor housed the foreign exchange policy department, which is responsible for formulating and implementing policies related to foreign exchange.