A Bangladesh court has ordered the arrest of the owners and four others over the country's worst-ever garment factory fire that killed 111 workers, after police laid charges.

The court in Dhaka on Tuesday issued the warrants for Delwar Hossain and his wife Mahmuda Akter over the blaze in 2012 at the Tazreen factory, where workers stitched clothes for Western retailers.

Held to account: Court orders the arrest of the owners of the clothing factory where 111 people died in the November 2012 fire.

"Dhaka's senior judicial magistrate Wasim Sheikh issued the warrants of arrest against the two fugitive owners, Delwar Hossain and his wife Mahmuda Akter, and four other company officials for the Tazreen factory fire," prosecutor Anwarul Kabir told AFP.

The fire on November 24, 2012, shone an international spotlight on appalling safety conditions in an industry worth more than $22.5 billion a year.