Kalapara radar can't see weather for 8 months

The massive but mute Kalapara radar station. PHOTO: STAR

Its five main instruments --antenna, microwave link, monitor, recorder system, balloons and transmitter receiverare out of order for about eight months and so it can not make any weather forecast.

But its 11 employees are drawing salary virtually without any work.

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The radar station was built in 1967 on eight acres of land. It started functioning in 1976 with Russian equipment. But it did not function properly. Instruments were brought from Mitsubishi Company of Japan and installed in 1988 with a ten-year warranty period, which expired much earlier, its officials told this correspondent during a visit on Monday last.

Foreign experts have also declared the instruments unfit for use.

The station in Kalapara was set up along with three others in Cox's Bazar, Rangpur and Dhaka under one project.

The Kalapara radar station has a range of 400 kilometres, covering the Bay of Bengal. It could send weather report with pictures to the Agargaon station in Dhaka within five minutes.

"We can now send reports only on rainfall, wind speed, humidity and temperature", said Prodip Kumar, now in charge of the station.

Several lakh people in the coastal areas including fishermen are now deprived of weather forecast from the station, he said.

A new project has been taken up to replace the radar station but the work yet to start, he added.

The vital post of Electronics Engineer at the station is vacant since March this year.

On the other hand, the massive building housing the station is without renovation for long. Plaster often falls from roofs and walls. During wet season, rainwater trickles through the roof at some places. Condition of five staff quarters is also the same.