Prime Minister Tareq Rahman has directed the formation of a strong task force to strictly enforce the national building code. The instruction came during a high-level meeting with the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief on Thursday. The meeting also approved several measures to enhance earthquake preparedness, including structural safety assessments, public awareness, curriculum inclusion, research funding, and improved rescue capacity.

Officials said the Prime Minister emphasized comprehensive readiness for potential earthquakes, with a proposal to classify buildings into green, yellow, and red categories based on safety. A detailed engineering assessment for major cities is under approval. The meeting also set a goal to train 100,000 volunteers within two months and to integrate disaster topics into examinations and teacher training. Universities will receive government funding for disaster research.

The meeting identified 445 safe shelters in Dhaka and reported 4,869 rescue tools across agencies. Each ministry was instructed to allocate a separate disaster management budget. The Prime Minister also gave policy approval to link the Fire Service with the Disaster Management Ministry to strengthen coordination.