Updated National Building Code comes into effect
Infrastructure
The government has published Bangladesh National Building Code 2020 in the form of a gazette mentioning for the first time the highest authority that will implement it and take action against any violation.
The updated gazette was published on 11 February.
The building code will be implemented by Bangladesh Building Regulatory Authority, comprising five members -- a planner, an architect, an engineer, a judge or a lawyer, and a civil servant, each of whom would require 30-year work experience in the respective fields.
The members will be appointed by the government, with one of them as chairman.
Each member will serve for three years.
Like BSc engineers, diploma engineers will also be able to supervise the construction of multi-storey buildings. However, in this case, the countersignature of a BSc engineer will be required.
According to the updated code, a 10-storey building or a building with a height of at least 33 meters will fall into the category of multi-storey building.
In the previous building code, a five-storey building or one with a height of more than 20 meters was called a multi-storey building.
The new building code will apply to the construction of buildings all over the country.
Professor Akhter Mahmud, president of the Bangladesh Institute of Planners and a member of the steering committee of the National Building Code, said the responsibilities of engineers, architects, planners, other professionals, and the related organisations were laid out in details in the gazette.
"If everyone adheres to their ethics and ensures the usage of quality construction materials, as described in the code, risks of disasters such as earthquakes and fires can be significantly reduced," he added.
The National Building Code's Principal Research Engineer Md Sakhawat Hossain said, "When the first building code was enacted in 1993, it did not have a legal basis. When the gazette was first published in 2006, it got a legal basis. The updated code addresses several new issues."
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