Cracks found in secretariat building
Staff Reporter :
Cracks have been detected in Building-1 of the Bangladesh Secretariat, the newly constructed 20-storey government office block, after Friday’s 5.7-magnitude earthquake that killed 10 people and injured more than 600 across the country.
Perched at the northwest corner of the Secretariat, the tower hosts the Cabinet Division and the Ministry of Public Administration.
Staff noticed visible damage, including a large crack on the north wall below Room 930 on the ninth floor where plaster had fallen off, and another on the tenth floor in Room 100.
Several officials said the sight of the cracks sparked panic among those working in the building.
Engineers from the Public Works Department stepped in quickly to calm fears. They confirmed the cracks had formed in five-inch-thick non-structural brick partition walls and had no impact on the main pillars or the building’s structural stability.
“The cracks are not dangerous, but they will be repaired immediately,” Executive Engineer Muntasir Mamun told reporters.
The quake, which struck on 21 November with its epicentre in Madhabdi, Narsingdi, was strongly felt in Dhaka and raised fresh concerns about the city’s resilience.
Panic deepened further the next day when three more tremors shook the capital within just eight hours.
Completed in December 2024 at a cost of Tk 461 crore, Building-1 was inaugurated in May 2025. Approved by ECNEC in 2018, it includes two basements and modern office facilities.
Even with PWD’s reassurances, the incident has prompted renewed questions about construction quality and seismic preparedness – particularly for new government structures in a high-risk earthquake zone.
It is reported that Juba League leader SM Golam Kibria Shamim, popularly known as GK Shamim, got the work order to construct the Cabinet Division building in the secretariat.
His firm also got work order to construct other buildings including RAB headquarters building, National Revenue Board building and other major public hospitals in the capital.
It was alleged that he bribed the government officials and Awami League leaders to get the work order of the buildings.