EDITORIAL : THE DAILY STAR, BANGLADESH

Saving buildings from quakes

Code implementation crucial

We understand from the minister for food and disaster management that the government will bring all the new buildings across the country under Bangladesh national building code standardization (BNBC) to minimize the fatalities from earthquake. Although we would like to take the decision on a positive note, we cannot help feel skeptical because of the ground realities pertaining to implementation status on a number of existing codes.

We are talking of a national programme whereas in the capital city itself the building code is extensively violated under the very nose of authorities. While this is happening at the seat of administration and at the hub of business including real estate activities, how can we expect that a national programme of building code implementation will meet with success?

A glaring example of flouting construction code is provided by how poorly implemented has been the Detailed Area Plan (DAP) which did zoning prohibiting construction activity in certain earmarked areas.

Also, government's relaxation of height restrictions provided that a land-owner or a builder leaves some specified portion of his plot out of his construction plan has been purposely taken undue advantage of.

We believe the codes and rules are all in place but what is of crucial importance now is their implementation. This must begin with the capital city itself where the need is the greatest if we are to save buildings from the onslaught of earthquakes of moderate to slightly higher magnitude. For the established notion is that most of the buildings in Dhaka city will collapse in the face of any serious earthquake.

Our vulnerability to earthquake is all too known. And if we are to prevent fatalities then we have to energetically and unfailingly render the city buildings reasonably earthquake-resilient. Otherwise, talking big about a national programme will only be meaningless, misplaced rhetoric.

Diplomacy win-win for both

Cricket result notwithstanding 

The WC semi-final encounter between India and Pakistan, two cricketing rivals brought heads of government of the two arch rival countries under the same roof and for hours together. It was indeed, in terms of duration and quality, a diplomatic engagement, not on the sidelines of cricket, but turned out to be something of a mainstream event in its own right. It was uninhibited by formalities or schedules or any rigidity of pre-arranged agenda.

In contrast to the high tension inside the Mohali stadium, there was no result-scoring pressure on Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh nor on his Pakistani counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani. The added value was in the host-guest friendliness in the field at the crowd level of supporters of both teams.

Relaxed, Manmohan and Gilani made full use of the huge block of time at their disposal talking a whole range of bilateral issues and sharing concerns for resolving them in the enlightened interest of both countries.

After the post-match dinner while meeting the press both prime ministers sounded a positive note of resolve to grapple with outstanding problems. Manmohan said, “Whatever may be the differences between the two countries, we have to devise ways to resolve them bilaterally”. Gilani reciprocated saying, India and Pakistan have the capacity to settle their differences bilaterally. Their realization that they have to solve their problems all by themselves will be welcomed everywhere.

Cricket has really played a catalytic role in a specific way in the sense that both the prime ministers have expressed their joint resolve to start a long term process of negotiations to come to terms with each other on a wide range of issues. If they go about building tangibly on the positive vibes from cricket-centred Mohali diplomacy, the region as well as the two countries will benefit from an ambience of peaceful coexistence.