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Well-marked low over Bay likely to weaken: Met Office
The well-marked low over northwest Madhya Pradesh and adjoining area is likely to weaken gradually, said the weather department on Wednesday.
Under its influence, deep convection is also taking place over North Bay and adjoining area, the Met office said in a special bulletin.
Read: Depression over Bay likely to weaken gradually: Met office
Besides, monsoon is strong over North Bay, it added.
Squally weather may affect the maritime ports, North Bay and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh.
Maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been advised to keep hoisted local cautionary signal No 3.
"All fishing boats and trawlers in the North Bay have been advised to remain close to the coast and proceed with caution until further notice," the department said.
Read: Low-lying areas of 5 dists flooded due to tidal surge caused by depression
They are also advised not to venture into the deep sea, it added.
Meanwhile, light to moderate rains or thundershowers accompanied by temporary gusty winds are likely to occur at most places over Rangpur, Rajshahi, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram and Sylhet divisions with moderately heavy to very heavy showers at places over the country, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
Bangladesh: Showers to continue, no respite in sight
More rains are likely to drench Bangladesh in the next 24 hours, the weather department has predicted.
"Light to moderate rains or thundershowers accompanied by temporary gusty winds are likely to occur at most places over Rangpur, Rajshahi, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram and Sylhet divisions with moderately heavy to very heavy showers at places over the country," it said.
The Met office recorded the highest 121mm of rainfall in Khulna's Chuadanga in the last 24 hours till 9am.
According to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department, the maximum temperature on Thursday was recorded in Sylhet at 31.3 degrees while the minimum was 23.8 degrees in Rangpur and Chattogram.
Day and night temperatures may remain nearly unchanged over the country, as per the weather bulletin.
Meanwhile, the well-marked low over the central part of Madhya Pradesh and adjoining area persists. Under its influence, a deep convection is taking place over the North Bay and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh.
The axis of the monsoon trough runs through Rajasthan, centre of the well-marked low, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal to Assam across the central part of Bangladesh.
One of its associated troughs extends up to the northwest Bay. Monsoon is active over Bangladesh and strong elsewhere over the North Bay.
Woman killed by husband in Dhaka
A 45-year-old woman has been stabbed to death allegedly by her husband in the city’s Khilgaon area.
The deceased was identified as Khuki Begum, wife of Abul Hashem of the Tilpapara area of Khilgaon. Abul Hashem, her husband, has been arrested, police said.
Abu Taleb, a sub-inspector at Khilgaon Police Station, said that Khuki, the mother of three, worked as a domestic help. Abul is a rickshaw puller by profession.
Read: BCL leader stabbed to death in Rangamati
Abul Hashem stabbed his wife around 10pm on Tuesday, leaving her injured, police said. Khuki was taken to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, where she died of her injuries around 2am on Wednesday.
Police suspect Hashem is mentally ill. "However, we are investigating the crime," said SI Taleb.
Bangladesh opens first super specialized hospital; PM urges doctors to be nice to patients
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday asked the physicians to dedicate themselves to extensively serve the general people and behave well with patients.
“I would like to request the doctors to dedicate themselves more extensively in providing healthcare services to the general and poor people of the country. You’ll have to go to villages and take care of the rural people. You’ll have to behave well with them,” she said.
The premier said this while inaugurating the newly constructed Super Specialized Hospital in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) through a virtual platform from her official residence Ganobhaban.
Read Specialized Hospital starts journey in Ukhiya
The country’s first super specialized hospital will be an alternative option for many Bangladeshis opting to go abroad for treatment.
Rain-swollen dam on verge of collapse in Satkhira
A dam along the coastal areas of the district is on the verge of collapse, with incessant showers having caused all major rivers across the district to swell.
With water levels of all the major rivers in Ashashuni and Shyamnagar upazilas of the district rising by the hour, several low-lying areas have already been inundated. Many fish enclosures have been washed away in these two upazilas, officials said.
Zulfikar Ali Ripon, officer-in-charge of Satkhira Weather Observatory Centre, attributed the showers to the depression in the Bay of Bengal.
Read Also: Two months after Cyclone Amphan, why are residents of Koyra still languishing in shelter centres?
The weather department has recorded 30mm of rainfall in the district in the past 24 hours, he said.
Abul Khayer, executive engineer of Satkhira Water Development Board, said that a 62-km span of the dam at 35 points of the coastal areas, out of 800km, is at risk of collapse, though repair work is under way.
Frequent rains, commute woes in Dhaka every morning
Frequent rains over the last few days, triggered by depression over the Bay of Bengal, are disrupting city life – especially for officer-goers and students. Today was no different.
Rain started Tuesday night and there was no respite this morning.
Read Maritime ports asked to alert vessels of possible squall
Sylhet transport workers call off strike
Bus services returned to normal in Sylhet on Wednesday, with transport workers calling off their strike on Tuesday night.
The aggrieved transport workers called off their stir after the district administration assured them to meet their five-point demand, according to union leaders.
“We had a meeting with officials of the district administration around 8pm and they gave us an assurance to meet all our demands," said Ali Akbar Rajan, joint general secretary of the district bus, mini bus, coach, and microbus workers' union.
"At the same time, the district administration officials requested us to suspend the strike in view of the SSC examination. So, we’ve decided to withdraw the indefinite strike," he added.
Mainul Islam, president of district bus, minibus workers union, said that the district administration assured them to fulfill all their demands by October 15.
Also read: Sylhet Transport owners to go on strike from Tuesday
"In view of their assurance and considering the SSC examination and Durga Puja, we have decided to postpone the strike till October 15. We hope the demands will be met by then," he said.
On Tuesday, the transport workers went on an indefinite strike to press home their five demands, including an end to harassment by traffic cops and suspension of Sylhet Metropolitan Police Commissioner.
The unions also demanded that the damaged roads in the district should be repaired at the earliest and that a ban be enforced on the sales and operations of CNG-powered auto-rickshaws and electric rickshaws in Sylhet.
Dhaka's air quality turns 'moderate'
Dhaka's air quality has turned 'moderate'.
With an air quality index (AQI) score of 84 at 9.15 am, the metropolis ranked 18th in the list of world cities with the worst air quality.
An AQI between 50 and 100 is considered ‘moderate’ with an acceptable air quality. However, there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.
Read: Global pollution kills 9 million people a year, study finds
The United Arab Emirates' Dubai, Pakistan’s Lahore, Vietnam's Hanoi, and Brazil's Sao Paulo occupied the first fourth spots in the list, with AQI scores of 181, 179, 163 and 144, respectively.
An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy', particularly for sensitive groups.
Similarly, an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be 'poor', while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered 'hazardous', posing serious health risks to residents.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.
Read: Light pollution threatens birds in cities
Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.
Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. Breathing polluted air has long been recognised as increasing a person’s chances of developing a heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung infections and cancer, according to several studies.
As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.
Global Covid cases near 615 million
The overall number of global Covid cases is fast approaching 615 million amid a rise in new infections in parts of the world.
According to the latest global data, the total case count mounted to 614,714,581 while the death toll reached 6,520,506 on Wednesday morning.
The US has recorded 97,200,706 cases so far and 1,076,343 people have died from the virus in the country, both highest counts around the world.
India's daily Covid-19 caseload on Tuesday fell below the 5,000 mark, officials said.
According to federal health ministry data released on Tuesday morning, 4,369 new cases of Covid were reported during the past 24 hours, taking the total tally to 44,504,949 in the country.
Twenty fresh deaths during the past 24 hours pushed the overall death toll to 528,185 since the beginning of the pandemic, the ministry said.
Covid in Bangladesh
Bangladesh reported one more Covid-linked death and 435 cases in 24 hours till Tuesday morning.
With the new numbers, the country's total fatalities rose to 29,335 and caseload to 2,015,743, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The daily case test positivity rate rose to 10.55 percent from Monday's 9.83 percent as 4,122 samples were tested.
The latest deceased was a man from Chattogram division.
The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.46 percent and the recovery rate dropped to 97.20 percent.
In August, the country reported 32 Covid-linked deaths and 6,689 cases.
Bangladesh registered its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 last year and daily fatalities of 264 on August 10 the same year.
Shortage of passengers, fuel price hike lead to decrease in vessels plying Dhaka-Barishal route
Launch owners have decreased the number of vessels plying the Dhaka-Barishal route due to shortage of passengers and price hike of fuel.
Three launches ply the Dhaka-Barishal-Dhaka route each day, the MV Manami’s Director Ahmed Jaki Anupam said after a meeting of launch owners of the Bangladesh Inland Waterways Association in the capital on Tuesday.
A total of 18 launches have been categorized into six groups to operate on the route per day, he said.
Director Anupam informed that the Barishal-bound launch from Dhaka will reach around 5am after departing around 8pm. On the other hand the Dhaka-bound launch from Barishal will also leave at 6am and arrive around 8pm on the same day.
Read: Upto 30 launch services from Sadarghat forced to fold post-Padma Bridge
He further said decision to stop overtaking among launches was taken at the meeting. All the decisions taken at the meeting will be implemented within four to five days.
Mahbub Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram presided over the meeting where its Vice President Bodiuzzaman Badal, Managing Committee’s Convenor of Dhaka Rivers Ports Water Traffic Plying Mamun-Or-Rashid and launch owners were present.