Natural disaster of a different kind: Cold Spell in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
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Being
a
Bangladeshi,
it
is
never
a
pleasant
experience
to
talk
about
the
periodic
natural
disasters,
mainly
floods
and
cyclones
that
ravage
the
country
every
now
and
then.
To
increase
the
sufferings
of
the
poor
disaster
vulnerable
people
of
the
country,
recently
there
has
been
a
new
addition
to
the
list
of
regular
natural
disasters
of
Bangladesh
named
Cold
Spell,
thanks
to
the
global
climate
change.
The
impact
of
Cold
Spell
is
as
notorious
as
other
regular
natural
calamities
of
Bangladesh
as
far
as
the
death
toll
is
in
concern.
The
recent
Cold
Spell
that
appeared
on
the
7th
January
in
Bangladesh
has
already
taken
sixteen
lives,
out
of
which
is
9
children
and
made
most
of
the
population
of
the
northern
Bangladesh
to
suffer
with
pneumonia,
cold
diarrhoea,
cough,
fever,
asthma
and
other
cold-related
diseases.
During
a
Cold
Spell,
gusty
extreme
cold
wind
coupled
with
heavy
fog
covers
the
whole
area
of
Bangladesh.
Historically
the
average
winter
temperature
in
Bangladesh
is
within
15
to
20
degree
Celsius.
However,
in
recent
Cold
Spells
this
average
temperature
has
dropped
to
as
low
as
4
degree
Celsius,
a
new
record
for
the
country.
The
most
affected
area
during
this
calamity
is
the
northern
part
of
the
Bangladesh
which
is
closer
to
the
Himalayas.
Northern
Bangladesh
is
the
most
poverty
stricken
area
of
the
country
where
people
have
year
round
income
poverty
and
seasonal
food
poverty
during
the
time
of
agricultural
lean
seasons.
The
recent
catastrophe
of
Cold
Spell
has
magnified
their
sufferings
to
a
severe
extent,
shortage
of
warm
clothing
and
shelter
has
caused
them
even
their
lives.
The
sufferings
of
poor
people
of
northern
Bangladesh
reached
to
an
untold
terrible
stage
especially
for
those
who
live
in
the
remote
island
areas
of
river
Tista,
which
is
locally
known
as
Char.
Some
places
in
the
northern
part
had
not
seen
the
sun
for
the
last
3
to
4
days
due
to
the
extreme
fog
and
clouds.
Most
places
of
the
char
areas
in
the
river
basins
remained
covered
with
fog,
reducing
the
visibility
till
noon
almost
every
day.
In
such
situations,
poor
cannot
join
their
regular
work
because
of
the
unfavorable
weather
condition
as
well
as
due
to
sickness.
As
a
result,
they
lose
a
significant
share
of
their
regular
income
which
further
reduces
their
ability
to
take
proper
action
against
the
shock.
Also
the
daily
transportation
of
food
items
from
all
parts
of
the
country
has
been
dangerously
interrupted.
Basic
road
and
water
transportation
has
been
delayed
for
an
indefinite
time,
causing
major
physical
communication
to
an
almost
complete
halt.
Needless
to
say,
such
physical
communication
chaos
has
triggered
the
price
of
common
household
commodities
to
a
seasonal
extreme,
causing
the
sufferings
of
the
poor
even
more
severe.
People
who
took
desperate
attempt
to
hit
the
road
ignoring
such
bad
driving
conditions
have
already
paid
the
price
with
road
accidents
if
not
heavy
traffic
congestions
in
the
highways.
The
main
reason
for
such
calamity
is
the
constant
and
consistent
blow
of
chilly
wind
from
the
northwest
blowing
at
a
speed
of
10-15
kms
per
hour
which
made
the
weather
further
cooler
during
the
typical
winter
season.
As
there
is
no
rain,
pollen
count
in
the
air
is
relatively
high
in
this
season
making
the
air
full
of
dust
and
causing
respiratory
problem
and
allergic
infections
along
with
asthma,
pneumonia,
chronic
bronchitis,
respiratory
problem,
chronic
obstructive
pulmonary
disease.
Hospitals,
especially
those
in
the
northern
part
of
the
country,
are
experiencing
massive
admission
of
patients
suffering
from
cold
related
illnesses
for
the
last
few
days.
Reports
received
from
different
sources
mentioned
seriously
sufferings
of
thousands
and
millions
people
living
in
the
sandy
char
areas
in
Kurigram,
Lalmonirhat,
Gaibandha,
Rangpur,
Nilphamari,
Bogra
and
Sirajganj
districts
on
the
Brahmaputra
basin.
As
a
concerned
national
of
Bangladesh,
I
feel
very
sympathetic
to
those
people
who
are
suffering
enormously
from
this
Cold
Spell.
I
heard
there
are
some
very
limited
charitable
activities
has
taken
place
so
far
in
helping
out
those
people.
I
take
this
opportunity
of
writing
about
such
natural
disaster
in
Ajiken
World
Trend
to
raise
concerns
among
the
development
partners
and
government
departments
and
in
general
Japanese
nationals
who
feel
sympathetic
about
it.