A five-day training on assistance and protection against chemical weapons and emergency response to chemical incidents ended at a Dhaka hotel Thursday.

The training course, which began on June 19, was jointly organised by the Bangladesh National Authority for Chemical Weapons Convention (BNACWC) and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

OPCW representatives, high officials from Bangladesh Armed Forces, police, ministries, and participants of other South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries were also present at the closing ceremony, according to the Inter Service Public Relation (ISPR) Directorate.

Four OPCW instructors, 20 participants from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Nepal, and 17 participants from Bangladesh attended the course.

Read: ILO calls for ensuring proper handling, storage of chemicals in Bangladesh

State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief Dr Md Enamur Rahman was present as the chief guest and Lieutenant General Waker-Uz-Zaman, Armed Forces Division principal staff officer and BNACWC chairman, was present as a special guest at the closing ceremony.

In March 2018, the same regional course was jointly conducted by the OPCW and the BNACWC in Bangladesh.

The practical part of this course was held at the Fire Service and Civil Defence Training Complex in Mirpur Wednesday.

The participants were oriented with all the gears and equipment they needed to use in an emergency.

They also learnt the mechanism involving identification, detection and decontamination procedures in the face of a chemical accident.

A basic idea regarding the medical management of chemical weapon casualties was also given to the participants.