Another Cold Spell Sweeps Country
The poor bear the brunt in northern districts
With another spell of cold wave sweeping the country, dense fog hides the sun even at 9:00am yesterday, as shown in the picture taken from Kawgaon on Dinajpur-Dhaka highway in Dinajpur district. Inset, a poor man and a boy try to stave off cold bite sitting beside a burning oven at an open space in Bhadra area of Rajshahi city yesterday.Photo: STAR
A second cold spell of the season now sweeping the country, has added to the miseries of the poor and disadvantaged people in northern districts. The people of the districts on Monday experienced this season's lowest temperature as mercury fell below 6 degree Celsius at several places. The severity of cold increased further due to bone-chilling winds, clouds, fogs and mists from Sunday afternoon. As people were forced to stay indoors, business, official activities and agricultural work in Thakurgaon and Panchagarh came almost to a halt while students in most schools and colleges stopped attending classes. Low income group people, especially who earn on daily basis, are bearing the brunt as they have no job. The sun in both the districts remained invisible during the last three days. Although different government and non-government organisations have started distribution of warm clothes, it is too inadequate for the poor, victims said. Agricultural activities are also being hampered as farmers cannot work at crop fields due to the chilling cold, said Belayet Hossain, deputy director of Thakurgaon Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE). On the other hand, potato farmers are worried as severe cold may cause fungal and pest attack, DAE sources said, adding that foggy weather is also harmful for seedbeds of IRRI-boro paddy. Farmers have been advised to water seedbeds at night and drain out water in the morning. “We told them to cover up the seedbeds with polythene sheets until clearing of fog and use proper fertiliser. If needed, farmers can spray thiovit to save their Irri-boro seedbeds from cold injuries," the DAE official said. In Lalmonirhat, three people including a minor boy died due to cold related diseases at three villagers in Sadar and Aditmari upazilas on Monday night and yesterday morning. A large number of people, especially children and elderly, have been attacked with cough, fever, asthma in the last three days. Bone-chilling wind coming from the Himalayas has made lives of low-income, distressed, homeless and those living in the Teesta, Dharla char areas miserable. The three victims are Jogesh Chandro Roy, 63, of Boruya village in Kulaghat union and Taher Ali, 67, of Karnopur village in Mogholhat union of Sadar upazila and Sohel Islam, 4, son of Majedul Islam of Polashi village in Aditmari upazila. According to Rangpur Met Office, the lowest temperature in the district was recorded at 6.5 degree Celsius on Monday morning. Our Correspondent in Dinajpur yesterday filed a similar report saying that chilling cold along with a blanket of fog disrupted the normal life in the district in the last couple of days. The Met Office recorded 6.5 degree Celsius temperature yesterday, the lowest of this season.
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