Warm clothes in demand as mercury falls in N dists
A large number of people are thronging the makeshift markets in Thakurgaon and Panchagarh districts to buy warm clothes to get rid of the biting cold sweeping over the districts.
The temperature ranged between 8.9 and 13.3 degrees Celsius at Tetulia of Panchagarh in last five days while it was 10.7 degrees at 9:00am yesterday, said sources at Tetulia Weather Observation Centre of Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
The Department of Agriculture Extension recorded 11 degrees Celsius temperature in Thakuraon on the day.
The severity of cold in the northern region is due to the cold air from the Himalayas, said officials at Tetulia Met office.
During a visit to different areas of Thakurgaon and Panchagarh in last two days, this correspondent saw people crowding the makeshift shops to buy sweaters, jackets, cardigans, woollen caps and mufflers.
Several buyers alleged that taking advantage of people’s helplessness due to the severe cold, the traders have increased prices of warm clothes.
“I came here to buy warm clothes for my daughter. But the vendors are charging higher than usual price,” said Rezina Begum, 45, a farm labourer of Barunagaon village in Thakurgaon Sadar upazila.
Islam, a day labourer of Moidandighi village in Boda upazila of Panchagarh, said he has come to Boda Bazar to buy a sweater or a jacket for his son but he is yet to buy one as the price is not reasonable.
Meser Ali, a vendor of second hand clothes at Thakurgaon, said the customers, mostly day-labourers, rickshaw-pullers and low-paid employees of different government and private organisations are crowding the makeshift market for the last couple of days as the temperature continued falling.
Meser refuted the allegation of demanding additional price for warm clothes, saying that this year they had to purchase winter clothes for higher prices.
Talking to common people in different areas, it was learnt that the distribution of warm clothes including blankets among the poor is much less than the requirement.
Thakurgaon Deputy Commissioner (DC) KM Kamruzzaman Selim said 32,000 blankets received from the Directorate of Relief and Disaster Management and the Prime Minister’s relief fund have already been distributed among the distressed people in five upazilas of the district.
“We have sent a letter to the higher authority, asking for 50,000 more blankets to mitigate the sufferings of cold-affected people. Besides, different government and non-government organisations are distributing warm clothes including blankets among the poor people,” he said.
In Panchagarh, the district administration distributed 28,000 blankets among the distressed people and sent a demand letter to the authorities concerned for 50,000 more blankets, DC office sources said.
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