Fog has destroyed potatoes planted in vast areas in Thakurgaon. The Boro seedbed has also been damaged in some areas. Due to dense fog, road crashes are taking place almost every day on the roads and highways of the district.
The lowest temperature in the country is regularly recorded in Panchagarh and Thakurgaon and neighbouring districts. However, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) could never gauge the exact temperature in Thakurgaon as there is no office of the BMD in the district.
As a result, the district, so close to the Himalayas, has never logged the lowest temperature in the country.
Of the five upazilas of the district, except Sadar upazila, the remaining four upazilas share borders with India and are very close to the Kanchenjunga.
People in the district complain that due to the absence of a Met Office there, the sufferings of the people are often not portrayed in the mainstream media and thus the real picture never reaches the authorities.
Panchagarh is the northernmost district of the country.
Cold and fog are more severe in the district during winter every year. But no one knows what the temperature is on a day-to-day basis in the district.
Local people say that it is also important to have a meteorological office or meteorological observation center in the district to take timely action to reduce public sufferings during winter.
Spells of the cold wave this year have badly affected the lives of the people in the district. Life has come to a standstill.
According to the Rangpur Meteorological Office, the minimum temperature in the district was 5.8 degrees Celsius on Sunday. This is the lowest temperature in the district in the past five seasons. However, as there is no meteorological office, all the people of the district, including journalists, are confused about the correct temperature.
Due to the non-existence of a Met Office, media personnel are failing to disseminate accurate news. Many farmers are incurring losses as their fields are being destroyed by fog every season and there is no remedy. Cattle and chickens are also dying due to severe cold. Authorities closed educational institutions in different districts during a cold wave earlier last month, but they hesitate to make such moves in Thakurgaon.
Lutfar Rahman Mithu, general secretary of Thakurgaon Press Club, said: "We have sometimes felt that the people of this district have faced the most disastrous winter but we have never been able to depict it in our area. This is because there is no meteorological office.”
District Secondary Education Officer Aktar Hossain said: “It is difficult for us to decide when to close schools and when to keep them open during winter as there is no accurate number of the temperature. We closed the secondary and primary educational institutions of the district in the past weeks but this week we could not make a decision yet.”
Sirajul Islam, Deputy Director of the local Department of Agricultural Extension, said: “Most of the people of this district are involved with agriculture. If there is a weather office, it will be possible to take quick action and prevent their losses.”
Personnel of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) posted at the border posts are also suffering during winter. They are manning the border throughout the year and no one knows the exact temperature there. 50-BGB Battalion Captain Lt Colonel Tanzir Ahmad said a correct weather forecast is crucial for the soldiers manning the posts so that they are better prepared to tackle any untoward situation.
Deputy Commissioner Mahbubur Rahman said: “We need to know the precise weather information to protect our farms and farmers. Knowing the weather is very important for the health of the general people and their livelihood. The administration has realized that there is an urgent need for a meteorological office in this district.”
