2 workers burnt alive

People crowd the road in front of Muktijoddha Supermarket in flames at Mirpur-1 in the capital yesterday. Police at one stage charge truncheons, inset, to drive them away to help fire fighters reach the spot. Photo: Amran Hossain/Syed Zakir Hossain

Two female factory workers were burnt alive in a fire that broke out at Mrs Luna United Company, a cotton factory, in the city's Kadamtoli area yesterday night.
The deceased were identified as Mary, 16, and Rina, 15, workers of the factory.
Police said the fire originated inside the factory at about 8:00 pm and soon engulfed the entire factory.
Factory sources said the two workers were burnt alive as they were trapped inside its bathrooms during the blaze that also gutted goods kept in the factory.
On information, fire fighters rushed to the spot and brought the flame under control at about 8:40 pm.
Local people said the fire might have originated from a candle as the workers were working under light of candles during the load shedding in the area.
Earlier, in another incident, at least 10 people, including two journalists, were injured as police charged baton on people trying to hold demonstration during yesterday's fire incident in Muktijoddha market in the city's Mirpur-1 area that burnt to ashes two cloth stores.
The fire originated from the ground floor of the five-storey market at about 1:57 pm and soon engulfed the two cloth stores--Adar Bastrabitan and Farhana
Valuables worth about Tk 26 lakh got gutted.
Police at Shah Ali police station said several hundred curious people created problem for the fire fighters in and around the spot that forced them to take the action.
Fire brigade sources said, 16 fire-fighting units from five fire stations--Tejgaon, Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Sadar and Kurmitola--rushed in and doused the flame at about 4:10 pm.
Deputy Commissioner (DC), Mirpur Zone, Anwar Hossain said Muktijoddha Market Shop Owners' Association and Traders' Association of the market blamed each other for the fire incident.
He said police took the action while both associations were trying to hold demonstration during the fire.
A trader of the market alleged that shop owners' association has been trying to shut down their business in the market for the last few years to build a high-rise building at the place.
The cause of the fire could not be known immediately.
The injured journalists are Masud Karzon of The Daily Samokal and Anis Rahman of The Daily Prothom Alo who were allegedly beaten by police during the police action.
However, Dhaka Reporters' Unity President Shameem Ahmed and General Secretary Pathik Shaha in a statement yesterday condemned the police attack on its member Anis Rahman and Masud Karzon.
Meanwhile, fire also broke out at the warehouse of U Maxin Threading on the first floor of a three-storey building at Companighat in the city's Hazaribagh area yesterday.
The fire originated from an electric short circuit at the warehouse of cosmetic goods at 2:10 pm and gutted valuables worth about Tk 30 lakh, fire brigade sources said.
Two fire units from Palashi fire station rushed to the spot and extinguished the flame at about 3:30 pm.