BSS, Rangpur
The sweeping bone-chilling cold wave forced people to stay indoors and thick layers of fog affected vehicular movements on the roads and highways in the northern region.
According to the Met Office sources, the minimum temperatures recorded on Monday were 7 degrees Celsius each at Rangpur, Dinajpur and Dimla, 6 degrees at Saidpur, 7.7 degrees Celsius at Tentulia and 7.2 degrees Celsius at Rajarhat points in the northern region.
On the other hand, the maximum temperatures recorded at 4 pm on Sunday were 14.6 degrees Celsius at Rangpur, 16.1 degrees at Dinajpur, 15 degrees at Saidpur, 18.5 degrees at Tentulia, 14.2 degrees at Dimla and 17 degrees Celsius at Rajarhat points.
Fogs, clouds and mists apparently gave most parts of the northern region a deserted look till 9 am today amid blowing cooler winds from the western and north-western directions exposing the poor and distressed people to extreme miseries.
However, the situation started improving when the sun appeared penetrating the thick layers of fog at 9 am today reducing sufferings of cold-stricken people, especially those living in the sandy char areas on the Brahmaputra basin.
Divisional Director (Health) Dr. Ahad Ali said doctors continued to treat a higher number of people with cough, fever, asthma and other cold- related diseases during the past few days in Rangpur division.
However, Dr. Ali said stock of medicines in the hospital as well as other health facilities is adequate and special steps have been taken at the government-run health facilities in districts and upazilas to treat cold-related patients.
Meanwhile, different voluntary, professional, political, socio-cultural and charitable organisations, business bodies and other institutions are extending their hands in distributing warm clothes among cold-stricken people to mitigate their sufferings.
District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer for Rangpur ATM Akhteruzzaman said 69,000 pieces of blankets received so far from the government are being distributed among cold-stricken people of the district.
Divisional Commissioner Abdul Wahhab Bhuiyan said more than four lakh pieces of blankets in addition to other warm clothes have already been distributed among cold-hit poor and distressed people in Rangpur division.
“Distribution of warm clothes among cold- hit people has been intensified further elsewhere in Nilphamari, Rangpur, Kurigram, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat, Dinajpur, Thakurgaon and Panchagarh districts in Rangpur division,” he added.
Talking to BSS, local residents said chilling cold severely affects normal life since early morning amid thick layers of fog in the air followed by significant improvement again with appearance of the sun in the afternoon almost daily in recent days.
Senior Coordinator (Agriculture and Environment) of RDRS Bangladesh Mamunur Rashid said the weather continues to behave peculiarly due to climate change causing sufferings to people and uncertainty to every sector, including agriculture.
“The mean temperatures of the day and night have been changed significantly slowly over the years creating peculiarity in the climatic pattern and causing extreme cold and extreme hot weather in the region due to climate change,” Rashid added.