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Children and the elderly are hit by a rise in cold-related diseases such as pneumonia, while chilling cold hits the income of the low-income people
Published : 13 Jan 2024, 01:50 AM
Shivering cold has hit Bangladesh in mid-winter, with dense fog at night and chilly wind at daytime disrupting daily life severely.
Children and the elderly are hit by a rise in cold-related diseases such as pneumonia, while biting cold has hit the earnings of the low-income people, especially daily wagers.
Rickshaw-van puller Korban Ali was waiting in Chuadanga town, late in the morning for passengers but there was none.
Chuadanga recorded the lowest temperature in Bangladesh at 9.6 degrees Celsius on Friday.
“I came to the market very early in the morning, but there were no people on the streets,” Korban said. “Some people have come out now, but no one wants to ride a rickshaw-van because of the wind. They are hiring Easybikes.”
Kishoreganj’s Nikli also recorded the lowest temperature at 9.6 degrees Celsius.
The district’s Deputy Commissioner Abul Kalam Azad said the local administration continued distributing blankets among the poor and monitoring the situation.
The sun could not be seen because of dense fog in Kurigram for three days as the mercury dipped to 13.6 degrees Celsius on Friday.
Farmers in the northern district fear the fog and wind may damage rice seedbeds of the Boro season.
On top of the effects of the weather condition, the fields for the Boro paddy and vegetable lack nurturing because farm labourers cannot work in such cold weather, said Abdul Baten, a farmer of Sadar Upazila.
Badsha Mia of Kanathalbari said the fog also affected potatoes, forcing the farmers to spray medicine frequently to prevent late blight fungus.
Abdul Hye, the relief and rehabilitation officer of the district, said they distributed 38,000 blankets among the poor this season, but these were very much insufficient to meet the demand.
In Pabna, the dew has been so heavy since Thursday night that it feels like drizzle.
People are using twigs to light fires for warmth as the sun could not come out on Friday.
The temperature in Pabna’s Ishwardi hit as low as 9.8 degrees Celsius.
Nazmul Hassan, chief of the weather station on Ishwardi, said persistent low temperature has increased the feel of cold.
At the markets, the number of customers of warm clothes has increased noticeably.
The sun could not be seen in Meherpur either. Rickshawpuller Zubayer Ahmed said his daily income has fallen to less than Tk 200 from Tk 500-700 because fewer people are going out and travelling amid the cold.
“But prices of daily necessities have not decreased. So, it has become very difficult for a family of 5-7 people to even buy rice and salt,” he added.
Abu Yusuf Sabuj, a doctor at Meherpur General Hospital, said the cold has caused a rise in the number of patients suffering from pneumonia, asthma, diarrhoea, cold and fever.
“We are struggling to handle the pressure amid a shortage of doctors,” he said.
