The lowest temperature of the country dropped to 6.1 degrees Celsius at the Rajarhat in Kurigram on Friday exposing the poor, elderly people and children to intense miseries.
The Met Office sources said the mercury levels sharply dropped in the northern region in the last 24 hours ending at 9 am forcing common people to remain indoors since the morning.
The country's lowest temperature of 6.1 degrees Celsius was recorded at Rajarhat monitoring point at 6 am Friday.
Besides, the minimum temperatures recorded on Friday were 8 degrees Celsius at Rangpur, 8.3 degrees Celsius at Dinajpur, 7.8 degrees at Saidpur, 7.2 degrees at Tentulia and 8 degrees Celsius at Dimla monitoring points in the region. Dense layers of fog amid blowing cooler winds caused bone-chilling cold exposing the poor, elder citizens and minor children to extreme miseries till Friday noon. However, the situation marked a little improvement with the appearance of the sun at noon though the normal life remained severely affected till 11 am.
Talking to BSS, Divisional Director (Health) Dr. Abu Md. Zakirul Islam said doctors continued to treat higher number of people with cough, fever, asthma and other cold- related diseases at the health facilities in the region in recent days.
"We have adequate stock of medicines in the hospitals and other health facilities and special steps were taken at the government-run health facilities to treat cold-related patients, including babies and children," he added.
Officials at hospitals, upazila health complexes and community clinics said the number of patients with cough, fever; asthma and other cold- related diseases continued increasing today like in the previous few days.
Divisional Commissioner Md. Abdul Wahhab Bhuiyan told BSS that distribution of warm clothes continues among cold- hit distressed people everywhere in the northern region.
"The government has sanctioned adequate blankets for distribution among the cold-affected people of Nilphamari, Rangpur, Kurigram, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat, Dinajpur, Thakurgaon and Panchagarh districts in Rangpur division," he added.
Besides, the government has allocated money for all eight districts in the division to purchase warm clothes and distribute those among cold-hit people.
Meanwhile, different voluntary, professional, socio-cultural and charitable organizations, trade bodies and other institutions are extending their hands in distributing warm clothes among the cold-stricken people to mitigate their sufferings.
Additional Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension for Rangpur region Agriculturist Md. Mahbubur Rahman said the sweeping cold wave might affect normal growth of different Rabi crop plants if the situation further deteriorates.
"The field level sub-assistant agriculture officers are assisting farmers to take proper care of growing Rabi crop plants and Boro rice seedlings," he said, adding that transplantation of Boro rice seedlings continues smoothly despite the cold wave.
According to reports reaching here from remote and char villages in Kurigram, Dinajpur, Thakurgaon, Panchagarh, Lalmonirhat, Gaibandha, Rangpur and Nilphamari districts said that normal life remained severely affected till Fridaynoon.
