Bangla tragedy: toll touches 300, people clash with police

Dhaka, April 26: Police on Friday fired tear gas and rubber bullets after thousands of garment workers took the streets to protest the collapse of a factory building on Wednesday which led to the death of 300 people.

The tragedy marked the nation's deadliest industrial accidents. The ill-fated eight-story building, named Rana Plaza, collapsed with several thousands people inside. Some workers had complained that building had developed huge cracks but the management asked them not to worry. The building caved in within an hour.

The rescuers digged the concrete rubble with drills, shovels and bare hands and were apprehensive even more bodies could be underneath the wreckage. Kin of the missing said the rescue operation was hampered by the lack of modern equipment and they protested, leading to the clashes with the police. Vehicles were vandalised by the protesters. There was, however, no reports of casualties in the clash.

The rescue operation had to be stopped for two hours till the clashes cam to an end. Authorities said on Friday morning that they pulled out 60 survivors over the last 24 hours. The rescue operation is generally conducted for five days after a disaster.

The protesters were also angry over the fact that the factory officials s pushed thworkers into the death trap despite the latter raising concern over the building's safety. Workers of most factories in the national capital, which is a hub of the country's huge garment business, refused to join work following the latest accident over safety conditions. Bangladesh is known for its poor industrial safety conditions.

The Rana Plaza was built six years ago on unstable land without proper permission, reports said.

OneIndia News