Police on high alert after fires spark fears of sabotages on key sites

The police forces across the country have been put on high alert and ordered to step up patrols around key point installations after a series of major fires in Dhaka and Chattogram over the past week.

According to police headquarters, all metropolitan, range, and district units have been ordered to maintain maximum vigilance after intelligence agencies warned of potential sabotage targeting critical national infrastructure.

The directive was issued late on Friday (18 October), just after a devastating fire that broke out at the cargo village of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka.

A police commissioner from a metropolitan area and several superintendents of police (SPs) confirmed to media that they had received formal instructions from headquarters. They said officers have been told to remain on maximum alert and to take immediate action to prevent any possible act of sabotage.

An official from the Chattogram Range Police said patrols were reinforced in several key areas shortly after the directive was issued. “We have been instructed to take pre-emptive measures and detain any suspicious individuals if necessary,” the official added.

Bangladesh currently has 587 designated KPIs, including Bangabhaban, Ganabhaban (which is being turned into the July Uprising Memorial Museum), the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban (Parliament), Secretariat, BTV headquarters, airports, prisons, and power plants.

The protection and monitoring of these vital sites fall under a government policy framework supervised by a national security coordination committee.

LND/SAE