DHAKA: The Rana Plaza Coordination Committee has agreed to award Tk50,000 (US$650) each to victims of the building collapse as advance compensation payments.

The money, which will be paid using the BKash system, will go to all injured workers, dependents of the dead and missing, and non-injured workers present in the complex when it collapsed one year ago tomorrow (24 April).

The payments to injured workers and dependents are considered advance payments, and will be deducted from their total entitlements before further payments are made, reports the Just-Style.com.

For non-injured workers, the TK50,000 will be their only compensation, while workers for Primark supplier New Wave Bottoms have already been paid the sum by the UK retailer.

The awards are made following the Coordination Committee’s decision to provide all victims with a “meaningful” sum in advance of the disaster’s first anniversary.

Meanwhile, the receiving and filing of claims is continuing, and more payments will be made following the review process, the Committee said.

Payments are being made out of the Rana Plaza Trust Fund, and from voluntary contributions made by global brands and others into the fund, which has received about US$15m of the estimated $40m needed to compensate all victims.

The multi-stakeholder Rana Plaza Coordination Committee was set up in the wake of the disaster last year.

BDST: 1012 HRS, APR 24, 2014