Despite historically being the peak monsoon period, July ended with an insubstantial amount of rainfall recorded nationwide. According to reports, in fact, Bangladesh has seen the lowest amount of rainfall this year since 1981.
Bangladesh Meteorological Department reported an astounding 57.6% lower than average July rainfall this year, with a mere 211mm of rainfall last month.
This is severely concerning. Not only will this have immediate impacts on the country and its people, it also alludes to a multitude of subsequent, long-term issues on the horizon.
For starters, the cultivation of all rainfall-dependent crops will now be impacted -- leading to farmers to switch to supplementary irrigation, which is bound to increase costs. The production rate will also be slowed down, with a risk of not being able to meet the production target this year.
With food security on the line, needless to say, a large portion of the population will indubitably suffer, as their lives and livelihoods depend primarily on the agriculture sector.
Furthermore, the uncertain weather conditions also draw our attention to the larger problem at hand: Climate change is undeniably catching up to us, and unless taken seriously, it can have devastating consequences on the nation.
While the authorities believe there is still time to meet the production target using alternative methods, the government should provide full support to our farmers.
It should also be noted that climate change is bound to cause ripples as such to what we have come to know as regular weather conditions, and so we must be fully prepared to counter any such irregularities in the future, so as to avoid such circumstances completely overturning people's lives.
