With over 70 people already killed due to landslides, it is high time that we came to a permanent solution to this problem which plagues the hilly areas of the country.
With Bangladesh being one of the countries most susceptible to climate change, natural disasters such as these have become all too common.
The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that the population in the Chittagong Hill Tracts has been increasing, and the hills are not safe for habitation in their current state.
Over time, the cutting of hills, and well as rampant deforestation, to make way for the population, has led to the areas becoming too dangerous for human habitation, and the increasing amount of rainfall that Bangladesh has seen has made it near impossible to keep these places safe.
Knowing all this, we must ask: Are we doing enough to ensure the safety of the residents of the area?
The government should work together with local communities to move them out of harm’s way.
Every year, people are moved into temporary tents during the monsoon season. But this is not a permanent, sustainable solution, and does not make way for the entire population of the area.
Better forest management, increased consultation with local communities, and better weather forecasts are needed.
These deaths cannot be allowed to go on.