History

The Fire Service and Civil Defence Department is an emergency service organization under the Ministry of Home Affairs of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. All the activities of this organization are dedicated to the service of the people. The then British government created the Fire Service in undivided India in the financial year 1939-40. During the partition, it created the Kolkata Fire Service for the city of Kolkata at the regional level and the Bengal Fire Service for Bengal in undivided Bengal (in Kolkata). In 1947, the Fire Service of this region was called the East Pakistan Fire Service. Similarly, during the Second World War, the Civil Defence Department in India was initially created as Air Raid Precautions (ARP) and later in 1951, the Civil Defence Department was created through legal process. For the purpose of work management, a department called Rescue Department was created under the Roads and Highways Department.

On 9 April 1981, the then Fire Service Directorate and Civil Defence Directorate were merged as per the government notification and the Fire Service and Civil Defence Directorate was established. Later, the Rescue Division under the Roads and Highways Department was incorporated into the Fire Service and Civil Defense Department.