Eight Bangladeshi victims of Saudi factory fire laid to rest following repatriation
Photo Collected
Eight of the sixteen Bangladeshi workers who perished in a factory fire in Saudi Arabia last month have been laid to rest in their respective hometowns following the repatriation of their remains.
The bodies of seven victims from the Atrai Upazila in Naogaon were buried on Friday morning following a joint funeral prayer held at the Molla Azad Memorial Government College grounds. The victims were identified as Md. Farid of Udonpoi village, Rubel Pramanik, Kalimuddin Islam, Mohan Ali, and Suman Ali of Gandagohali village, Sohel Rana of Dubai village, and Abdul Jalil Sarkar of Parkasunda village.
The funeral was attended by local dignitaries, including Member of Parliament for Naogaon-6 Sheikh Rejaul Islam, Naogaon Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Saiful Islam, and Atrai Upazila Executive Officer Moniruzzaman. Following the ceremony, the coffins were transported to their respective family graveyards for burial.
Separately, the remains of 46-year-old Shyamal Uddin Majhi, from Bagmara in Rajshahi, were interred in his family cemetery at 10:45 a.m. on Friday. His body had arrived at his residence in the village of Morogram Dangapara earlier that morning, drawing hundreds of mourners.
The bodies of nine victims were returned to Bangladesh on Thursday afternoon via a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. In addition to the seven from Atrai and the victim from Bagmara, the remains of Rabiul Islam from Naldanga, Natore, were also repatriated.
The tragedy occurred on August 9 when a devastating fire broke out at a sofa factory in the Manfuha district of Riyadh, killing 16 Bangladeshi workers. Saudi authorities successfully identified nine of the victims through fingerprint analysis, but the identities of the remaining seven individuals remain unconfirmed.
Families of the missing victims have appealed to the government to expedite the identification process and ensure the swift return of the remaining bodies. Parul Bibi, whose son Minhaj remains missing, expressed the agony of the families still waiting for closure, stating that she is desperate to see her son one last time.
Naogaon Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Saiful Islam confirmed that efforts are ongoing to identify the remaining residents from the district through DNA testing and that the repatriation process will continue once identities are verified.
For the families of those laid to rest, the grief is compounded by economic uncertainty. Relatives of Shyamal Uddin Majhi, who had moved to Saudi Arabia eight years ago to provide for his three daughters, expressed gratitude to the government for the swift repatriation while calling for financial assistance to support the dependents left behind.
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