'Rules are for fools and money talks are the two guiding principles in Bangladesh'

Dr. Jamilur Reza Choudhury

Dr. Jamilur Reza Choudhury, Vice Chancellor, University of Asia Pacific and former Professor of Civil Engineering, Buet, talks with A.B.M. Shamsud Doza of The Daily Star about existing building regulations mechanism in the context of the Savar building collapse.

The Daily Star (TDS): The recent collapse of Rana Plaza in Savar has pointed out loopholes in our existing building regulation mechanism. What is your view?

Jamilur Reza Choudhury (JRC): The major legislation to regulate building construction is the Building Construction Act 1952. In addition, related to this is the Town Improvement Act, 1953. Therefore, under the provision of the Building Construction Act, the government has been empowered to formulate construction rules from time to time. The latest building construction regulation was approved in 2008. So, all buildings which have been constructed were supposed to have followed the regulations.

Whatever may be the type of building -- new building, extension of existing building or even change in the plan and usage of any building -- the owner has to apply to the building regulatory agency for any changes.

The procedure is well defined. Suppose, one wants to build an industrial structure. First, he has to apply to the designated authority of the government. For Dhaka it is Rajuk. The jurisdiction of the Rajuk is 1,528 sq km, which includes the whole of Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan (DMDP) and DAP. First of all, he has to apply for land use permit before starting the design. There are thirty different classifications of buildings in Building Regulation Act. Even the types of industries are mentioned there. For example, if it is a hazardous industry, then it can only be located in the designated areas in the DAP plan. When applying for land, one has to mention what type of industry one wants to set up. If it is complies with the provision then he will get land use clearance. Then he can go for designing. Not anyone can do the designing. There are two types of design -- architectural design and engineering design. The architects and engineers have to be registered with Rajuk. It is not possible for the authority to check every design. Therefore, the liability is transferred to the designer. If anything happens to that particular building, as per law, that particular professional will be taken to task for professional negligence.

When the design is approved, the owner can start construction. For buildings more that four-story high you have to submit the soil investigation report. In quite large parts of Dhaka, the buildings are constructed on open fields. So, one has to submit the geo-technical report.

Once Rajuk approves the floor plan and structural design, then one can start construction, but up to the ground level only. When the construction reaches there, the owner is supposed to inform Rajuk requesting an inspection. So, Rajuk is supposed to send an inspector to check the construction and certify it, and only then you can go up.

When the building is completed, either partially or fully, and the owner feels that it is ready for occupation, he has to apply to Rajuk again to get occupancy certificate. Fire Service and Civil Defense are also involved here, because fire is one of the big hazards. Only when he gets the certificate can the owner occupy it. If one gets permission for a light industry, one cannot go for a heavy industry.

TDS: It is reported that Rajuk has very little manpower to watch over such a large number of buildings. So, regulations remain on paper. How can we solve the problem?

JRC: One of the solutions suggested is to go for public private partnership. Final approving authority will remain with Rajuk. Rajuk can designate an area to a particular consulting group for checking the design. They will certify it officially.

Rajuk is already overloaded. It is at the same time a planner, developer, regulator and contractor. It is more interested in working as developer and contractor. So, we can establish a separate body called Nation Building Regulation Authority. It will only do the regulatory job.

Once it was discussed that Public Works Department (PWD) would be handed some duties of Rajuk. They have good setup all over the country. Still they will not be able to look after buildings in villages. Nowadays, there are lots of four-storied buildings in villages. There is no supervision for these buildings.

We repeatedly urged the government to implement these suggestions, but they do not pay heed to us. Therefore, implementation of building regulations remains weak, sometimes non-existent. Here, "rules are for fools" and "money talks" are the two guiding principals.

TDS: In the recent building collapse incident at Savar, we found very little preparedness from designated bodies. What is your view?

JRC: It is true that we have done very little work on disaster preparedness. For instance, field hospitals should have been set up by the army, but unfortunately, I did not find any. It seems to me that our forces have lack of experience.

Disaster Management Bureau is supposed to be the lead agency in coordination. They should have set up a control centre and taken over the whole process. Then they could have coordinated among other relevant organisations. When I was a member of one of the government committees formed in this regard, we made a computerised database of which organisation has what type of machines and tools to use in rescue operation and who are the contact persons for particular machines. On that basis, we recommended what new tools were to be purchased. The government did not provide enough fund so all the equipment could not be purchased.

In India, there is a National Disaster Response Force. They are prepared to fly out to any place within a very short time. There is also a UN body called International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) and Bangladesh is a member of that group. The government could have asked for assistance from them.

There is a model for standard search and rescue team comprised of search wing, rescue wing, technical wing and medical wing. In American standard, this whole team is a 31-man unit. We should have formed such working units.

TDS: It seems that there is also lack of awareness among the public about the safety of the buildings in which they reside or work. What can we do on that front?

JRC: There is no civil body to work for building safety. Civil bodies should actively take part in this issue as much as they do in other public interest issues like environment, health and so on.

The certificates of building approval and occupancy should be displayed in every building.

Banks should not provide loan for a building without proper approval from government agencies and certification by a registered engineer. For earthquake preparedness, it is recommended that there should be mandatory building insurance against earthquake. Insurance companies will then check the buildings on their own. Every industry should also have insurance for workers.