Civil aviation law receives cabinet approval
This applies to cases of death or injury to passengers, flight delays, as well as damage or loss of luggage and cargo
The government on Monday finally moved to enact an aviation law to protect the rights of Bangladeshi airlines passengers and provide them with legal coverage and compensation.
This applies to cases of death or injury to passengers, flight delays, as well as damage or loss of luggage and cargo.
The cabinet approved, in principle, the draft of the Civil Aviation (Montreal Convention 1999) Act, 2019. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina chaired the meeting.
Although Bangladesh is a signatory to the Montreal Convention, the absence of a law prevented passengers from getting legal coverage and compensation in accordance with the convention.
Referring to the US Bangla Airlines crash in Nepal last year, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said the families of the deceased passengers received $12,000 as compensation.
“The amount would have been as high as $160,000 if we had a law in line with the Montreal Convention back then,” he added.
He said responsibilities of the airlines in handling luggage and cargo have also been specified in the draft law.
According to the draft law, compensation for lost or misplaced baggage will be raised to $70 from the existing $25, while compensation for lost or misplaced cargo will increase by $2 from the existing $25.
“The airlines will pay the compensations,” Shafiul said.
The highest punishment for violating the proposed law is a 10-year imprisonment or Tk100 crore fine or both.
All the domestic and international airlines operating from Bangladesh will come under the purview of the proposed law.
