Tea workers shiver with cold
Bitter cold in Srimangal of the district makes the life of tea workers, especially the elderly people and the children, miserable.
The sun remains invisible till noon in the area due to fog while the people, including the tea workers, try to keep warm, burning straw. The tea workers stay in the house due to hostile weather and lack of warm clothes.
"We are shivering with the bitter cold even inside the house," said Koloti Ghatuar, an elderly woman at Kurma tea garden beside the Dhalai river.
The temperature was recorded 8.3 degrees Celsius yesterday, said Harun-ur Rashid, senior adviser of Srimangal Meteorological Centre.
The number of patients of cold-related diseases has increased during the last few days, said said Dr Zakir Hosain, resident medical officer of Kulaura Upazila Health Complex.
Children have been afflicted with cold-related and water-borne diseases like cough, pneumonia, vomiting and diarrhoea, he said.
The workers of Harincherra tea garden went to the local union parishad office for warm cloths but returned without any help, said Swapan Nayek in Srimangal upazila.
The poor people of the tea garden areas are the worst sufferers as they can hardly afford warm clothes, said Rajghat Union Parishad Chairman Bijoy Benarjee.
A total of four lakh people of 92 tea gardens in Moulvibazar suffered a lot due to shivering cold, said Makhon Lal Karmakar, president of Bangladesh Tea Workers Union. Makhon Lal said they did not get any help from the garden owners so far.
Bangladesh Cha Sangsad Vice-Chairman Shafwan Chowdhury said they supported the tea workers during this winter in a limited scale.
District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer Narayon Chandra Saha said they received only 27,988 blankets so far for seven upazilas in the district.
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