DHAKA, Feb 3, 2020 (BSS) – The cabinet today gave nod in principle to a draft of the “Designated Reference Institute for Chemical Measurements, Bangladesh Act, 2020”, to facilitate an already built institute to conduct micro level test of chemicals.
The approval came from a regular weekly meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair held at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) here.
“The cabinet today approved the Designated Reference Institute for Chemical Measurements, Bangladesh Act, 2020 aimed at facilitating an already set up institute to smoothly run its activities in measuring chemicals by maintaining the ISO standard,” Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam told a news briefing held at Bangladesh Secretariat after the meeting.
Anwarul said that the Designated Reference Institute for Chemical Measurements had been inaugurated on June 10, 2012 for the development of chemical metrology.
The draft law has proposed to separate the institute from the jurisdiction of the BCSIR and establish it as a statuary body under the Ministry of Science and Technology, he said adding that the proposed law also recommended to form a nine-member governing body with representatives of the institute and appoint a director general (DG) as its chief executive officer from the country’s noted scientists and researchers.
Replying to a query, he said, “BSTI has already given nod to the institute. The institute is being entrusted with the task of conducting tests of all sorts of chemical components at the micro level while the BSTI is doing test on goods.”
The government’s top bureaucrat said Bangladesh had to send (sample of) milk to Madras (also known as Chennai) of India for its chemical test when the controversy of having harmful element in milk was raised.
He continued saying that the countries having no such institutes can send sample of chemicals for conducting their micro analysis.
The cabinet, however, today approved in principle the draft of “Company (Amendment) Act, 2020” alongside giving nod to the National Oil and Chemical Spill Contingency Plan (NOSCOP) to check the risk of spilling chemical into the seas, rivers and other water bodies.
The cabinet also gave retrospective approval to the “Protocol on Trans-Boundary Elephant Conservation between Republic of Bangladesh and Republic of India”.