Close on heels of recent reports which maintained that increasing number of workers are getting infected by COVID-19, an inspection carried out by the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) found many small and medium-sized factories are not adhering completely to the health guidelines, claimed media reports.
The special inspection drive carried out by the DIFE in May reportedly found that most of the bigger units were running their operations following the COVID-19 guidelines issued earlier but there were aberrations to it when it came to the small and medium-sized players.
Further, the DIFE reportedly underlined that maintaining the social distancing norms – to avoid spread of the dreaded virus – has become a major concern for these small and medium-sized factories, underlined the report citing sources from DIFE.
The DIFE, however, has not yet disclosed the names and details of these factories.
As per DIFE, the number of infected workers stood at 280.
However, as per the country’s Industrial Police’s findings, the number of workers infected with COVID-19 has increased to around 417 on 21 June from what was 217 on 1 June.
Of these workers, at least 311 are said to be workers who are employed with 99 garment manufacturing and textile units that are reportedly members of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) and the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA).