BGMEA urges owners to keep factories shut till April 11

Hours after thousands of garment workers reached Dhaka posing great risk of coronavirus spread, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Rubana Huq tonight urged the owners to extend the closures of their factories till April 11 amid the shutdown.

Rubana Huq confirmed the matter to the journalists in a message on Whatsapp group.

Since Saturday was the last day of holiday for garment sector in Bangladesh following the partial lockdown imposed by the government, the garment workers from across the country reached Dhaka by various means including - walking for miles, on overloaded ferries or pickup vans etc. There were no normal mode of transports on the street due to the public transport shutdown. But they reached in the capital facing immense sufferings to join the work from Sunday as scheduled.

Earlier on March 26, Rubana Huq urged the owners to consider closure of their factories as the nation is fighting to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Many factories were closed and were supposed to reopen on Sunday.